THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 10, 1995 TAG: 9502100539
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
Three Republican governors, complaining of Draconian requirements and broken promises from the Environmental Protection Agency, urged Congress on Thursday to rewrite the 1990 Clean Air Act and give states leeway in reducing air pollution.
Virginia Gov. George Allen said his state has been ``in an uphill battle'' with the EPA over auto emissions regulations. He asserted that the agency repeatedly has thrown ``bricks in the road'' when state officials try to comply with the law.
Allen was joined in the chorus of criticism of the law by California Gov. Pete Wilson and Michigan Gov. John Engler, both Republicans, who told a House Commerce subcommittee that the law imposes unrealistic, costly requirements on the states and the economy.
Engler said that in recent weeks the EPA had shown a fresh desire to work with state officials and that some of the significant complaints in Michigan appeared to be getting resolved. Nevertheless, he said, the clean-air law has ``proven to be expensive, unfair and inflexible'' and should undergo major surgery.
Allen and Wilson strongly criticized EPA attempts to direct the kind of automobile emission inspection and repair programs they should impose to help reduce urban smog.
They said the EPA had wanted central testing facilities in place of the current, wide practice of allowing service stations to conduct the tests. The inspection and testing requirements have been a subject of controversy in a dozen or more states.
Recently the EPA has backed away from requiring the centralized testing as long as states show alternative programs achieve the same reduction in smog-causing tailpipe emissions. The agency has argued that central testing, although more expensive, produces much greater pollution reductions than allowing the tests at service stations.
The governors accused the EPA of micromanaging clean-air policy. ``Give us the goals, then get out of the way and we can work with that,'' Engler told the lawmakers.
House Republicans increasingly have been talking of reopening the 1990 law to resolve some of the concerns raised by state and local officials.
Rep. Thomas Bliley, R-Va., the Commerce Committee chairman, said his panel intends to closely scrutinize EPA's implementation of the clean-air regulations and seek changes if necessary.
In separate testimony, EPA Administrator Carol Browner acknowledged a growing number of complaints about the 1990 law, especially as it applies to curbing auto emissions. But she said these concerns can be addressed by the agency.
She promised greater flexibility for states and said the EPA believes it can resolve most of the concerns being raised. She noted the agency this week worked out problems involving air quality compliance in southern and western Michigan, and had reached agreement over the auto inspection issue with New Jersey and several other states.
Browner promised to ``make the program more consumer friendly'' but cautioned against trying to rewrite the 1990 law.
``We must be committed to strong health-based standards'' nationwide as required by the law, she said. ``The quality of the air we live with should not be based on what state we come from.''
Despite the controversies, she told the Commerce investigations subcommittee that the law has been a success, crediting it for a 24 percent reduction in pollution compared to 1970 levels.
She rejected criticism that cleaning up the air hurts the economy.
``For every $1 billion spent in pollution control, 20,000 new jobs are created,'' said Browner.
``We have protected millions of Americans from cancer, heart disease and premature death, but more still needs to be done,'' she said, adding that two of every five Americans still live in areas that do not meet federal air quality standards throughout the year. by CNB