Move targets EPA and NHTSA, escalating state’s battle with Trump administration
By Timothy Puko | The Wall Street Journal
California is escalating its battle with the Trump administration over cars and climate change, filing suit Friday to demand that two federal agencies release data they used to justify a rollback of auto emissions standards.
The lawsuit by the state Air Resources Board says the Trump administration failed to show it met requirements to take meaningful input from state officials while it crafted a new proposal to ease emissions standards.
The suit targets the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, saying they failed to reply by legal deadlines to requests for records in connection with the rollback decision, hindering California from fully evaluating and responding to the agencies’ proposal.
“In a stark departure from prior rulemakings, critical information underlying EPA’s and NHTSA’s analyses was not disclosed,” California officials said in the suit.
An EPA spokeswoman declined to comment on the suit, saying the agency doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
