Opposing the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act of 2023

Floor Speech

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Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my opposition to H.R. 4468, the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act of 2023, which would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from finalizing the proposed rule titled ``Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles'' and further prohibit EPA from prescribing any regulations for new motor vehicles that would directly or indirectly result in the limited availability of new vehicles powered by any given engine technology.

EPA's vehicle emissions standards save lives. By 2030, these standards are projected to prevent 40,000 premature deaths and 34,000 hospital visits annually. However, H.R. 4468 would force Americans to breathe dirty, polluted air, needlessly putting tens of thousands of lives at risk. This bill would lock in dirty, fossil-fuel-burning vehicles for the foreseeable future, at a time when the American people are already experiencing the deadly effects of climate change. More fossil fuel cars mean more frequent and intense floods, stronger hurricanes, more dangerous wildfires, and more extreme heatwaves. Simply put, we are out of time. We must reduce climate pollution now.

California has long been a global leader in the fight against air pollution. We established the first vehicle emissions standards and the first greenhouse gas standards in the country because we know that strong air quality standards mean healthier communities and a livable climate. I am a proud Californian and a proud champion of strong vehicle emissions standards.

In July of 2023, I led 94 of my colleagues in a letter urging EPA to finalize the strongest feasible emissions standards for new light- and medium-duty vehicles, which would cut harmful emissions from passenger cars and pick-up trucks by more than 50 percent between 2026 and 2032.

H.R. 4468, however, would not only prevent EPA from implementing the proposed light- and medium-duty vehicle emissions rule--it would gut EPA's authority to regulate vehicle pollution altogether. It is disgraceful. We are faced with a choice between new zero-pollution technologies or doubling down on dirty fossil fuels. The choice is clear. I strongly oppose H.R. 4468, and I urge my colleagues to oppose this dangerous legislation.

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