How the EPA Violated the Clean Air Act

Ask a Californian what’s so special about the Golden State – you'll hear about our beaches, our redwood forests, and our high tech and entertainment hubs. 30 years ago, you'd have heard about our smog. Today's small business owners, however, will tell you about our "unique" environmental regulations. California’s emissions laws are the strictest in the nation, thanks to an exemption from the EPA’s Clean Air Act that allows special vehicle standards, as long as they're at least as strict as federal standards. The Clean Air Act of 1970 requires the EPA to submit new rules to an expert oversight panel, which it failed to do for new recommendations by the California Air Resources Board. While the Air Resources Board may have once been needed to address a crisis, its new rules go too far (modern diesel engines emit far less exhaust than engines from even 15 years ago). Ted Hadzi-Antich is the senior attorney for the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Center for the American Future, and is on the team challenging the EPA's violation of the law. He stands for thousands of small businesses that would be devastated by the restrictions on diesel vehicles, while big corporations thrive based on their ability to comply. Ted joined the show to clear the air for us Californians, and to give an overview of the EPA's regulatory overreach nationwide.