California and other states sue EPA over auto emissions rollbacks

California and more than a dozen other states are suing EPA over Administrator Scott Pruitt's recent decision to roll back greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars. "My message to the EPA and Administrator Pruitt is simple: Do your job. Regulate carbon pollution from vehicles," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said at a press conference Tuesday. "We are not looking to pick a fight with the Trump administration, but we are ready for one." The lawsuit comes just days after sources said the Department of Transportation is planning to propose freezing fuel economy standards at model year 2020 levels. That could pave the way to a lower EPA greenhouse gas standard as well as an effort to block California from enforcing its own more stringent greenhouse gas standards. "This move by Pruitt with the help and encouragement of Trump is not going to make America great. It's going to make America second-rate," said California Gov. Jerry Brown. "This is a science-based attack that we make on these characters in Washington." Pruitt told lawmakers last week that he did not plan to go after California's ability to enforce its standards, and said he was looking to work with the state on the program. Democratic lawmakers are now calling those statements into question. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia, as well as the District of Columbia. source: https://www.politico.com/story/2018/05/01/california-states-sue-epa-auto-emissions-561792 #Headlines by: aadragna@politico.com (Anthony Adragna)

Original Post: https://www.politico.com/story/2018/05/01/california-states-sue-epa-auto-emissions-561792