EPA Unveils Clean Car Standards

Statement of EDF Executive Director Amanda Leland

March 20, 2024
Sharyn Stein, 202-905-5718, sstein@edf.org

“This is a day to celebrate American achievement. The step EPA is taking today will slash climate pollution and air pollution. It will bring more jobs for workers, more choices and more savings for consumers, and a healthier future for our children.  

“The U.S. has leapt forward in the global race to invest in clean vehicles, with $188 billion and nearly 200,000 jobs on the way. Jobs in communities across the country, in places like Michigan, Nevada, and Kentucky. These clean car standards will help supercharge economic expansion and make America stronger. Ask the Air Force veteran who wants a powerful car that doesn’t run on foreign oil. Ask the third-generation auto dealer in Michigan who wants to be able to sell made-in-America clean cars. Ask my 76-year-old parents, who drive a clean car because it costs less and will help leave a better world for their grandchildren. 

“These new standards will mean more choices. Better, faster, more fun, cheaper clean cars and passenger trucks of all kinds. American ingenuity will give families more options than ever before – and choosing an electric vehicle will save thousands in fuel costs in the process.  

“Finally – and most importantly to me, as a mom – these new standards will mean healthier days ahead for us all. Today’s action will cut over seven billion tons of climate pollution – that’s more than all U.S. greenhouse gas pollution last year. It will slash deadly soot and reduce smog. That means fewer asthma attacks, less heart disease, and longer lives. The reality is clean cars will save kids.  

“The future is electric – built on a shared, pollution-free vision grounded in economic prosperity, job growth, and consumer savings. Today we continue our journey toward a cleaner, healthier world. As a mom, I want to thank everyone who made it possible.” 

            - Amanda Leland, Executive Director of Environmental Defense Fund.

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One of the world’s leading international nonprofit organizations, Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org) creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. To do so, EDF links science, economics, law, and innovative private-sector partnerships. With more than 3 million members and offices in the United States, China, Mexico, Indonesia and the European Union, EDF’s scientists, economists, attorneys and policy experts are working in 28 countries to turn our solutions into action. Connect with us on Twitter @EnvDefenseFund