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With Your Help, We Stopped Them In The House. Now We Need
Your Help To Stop Them In The Senate!
Click
here for a sample letter to your Senator
The Pennsylvania Clean Vehicles Program requires automobile dealers
to offer cleaner, more fuel-efficient cars than those currently
required under the weak federal requirements. This program, currently
on the books, will give our consumers the choice of cleaner, more
efficient vehicles already required in a number of other states,
including New York, New Jersey and California. The program will
help areas in the state meet federal clean air standards that are
currently out of compliance.
Opponents of the PA Clean Vehicles Program, such as the auto manufacturers,
have gotten legislation - SB 1025 - introduced to repeal the Program,
before it can be implemented. We need your help to convince your
Senator, who may be asked to vote on this bill in the next few days,
to oppose the bill, and to support the Clean Vehicles Program implementation.
Tailpipe emissions cause serious health impacts and are an important
contributor to Pennsylvania counties failing to attain the federal
air standards. This puts us at an economic disadvantage to places
that meet air standards. Some in the Senate want Pennsylvania to
follow a weaker federal program that would not achieve the same
results.
Take Action Now! ~~ Contact your Senators to voice
your support for the Pennsylvania Clean Vehicles program, and ask
them to OPPOSE Senate Bill 1025 that would block implementation
of the program. Click
here to link to a sample message; feel free to add your own points
and personalize the message. ~~
Background: The clean cars program requires that
automakers must ensure that sales of vehicles that emit more pollution
are balanced out by sales of those that emit much less pollution.
If we move to employ the program already unanimously approved by
the Environmental Quality Board in 1998, we will join eight other
states including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California.
• Health, air quality, and economic competitiveness
will improve. This program will help most of Pennsylvania’s
counties to finally meet clean air standards for ozone smog pollution,
a problem that causes significant health impacts such as triggering
asthma attacks. Pennsylvania counties out of compliance are at a
competitive disadvantage to other areas that meet health standards,
as new industries and businesses cannot locate there. The Pennsylvania
Clean Vehicles Program will achieve more than the weaker federal
Low Emissions Vehicle II (LEV II) program.
• Pennsylvania’s contributions to global warming
will be reduced. Pennsylvania alone contributes more than
one percent of all the global warming pollution in the world.. The
Clean Vehicles Program will include vehicles with modifications
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions like carbon dioxide, nitrous
oxide, and methane. Many of these proven technologies are found
in cars today, and add little or no cost to the vehicle: aerodynamic
designs, improved transmissions, and engine modifications.
• Car prices may be lower for some vehicles, and any
higher costs for low-emissions vehicles will be offset by savings
from fuel and engine efficiency. Clean cars get better
fuel and engine efficiency - i.e. they use less gasoline - such
that car owners can expect to save money over the life of the vehicle.
Savings will go up as gas prices go up.
• Clean cars will reduce demand for gasoline and help
keep gas prices lower. Demand for gasoline will be lower,
slowing the pace of sharply rising gas prices. Any legislator that
opposes the clean car rule is also opposing a plan that will help
reduce gasoline demand and price.
Click
here for a sample letter to senators (Word document)
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