SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline) — California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced April 26 that he has joined a coalition of 16 attorneys general in urging Congress to protect critical ozone air quality standards.
The coalition opposes the Ozone Standards Implementation Act of 2017, which would delay the ozone rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2015. According to coalition, the 2015 rule was designed to save lives and result in public health benefits. In California alone, according to Becerra’s office, the rule could save up to 218 lives annually and prevent hundreds of hospital visits for asthma and other respiratory problems.
“Clean air shouldn’t be a luxury, and we shouldn’t make people wait even longer to get it,” Becerra said. “Can you imagine the pain a parent feels when his or her child can’t breathe? This legislation is a giant step backward for clean air and public health.”
Attorneys general involved in the coalition are those from New York, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia. The acting secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is also involved.