NOTE: The Maryland Office of the Attorney General shared the following press release:
BALTIMORE, MD – Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a coalition of attorneys general and cities in submitting a comment letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) opposing its proposed rule to delay implementation of the Tier 4 emissions standards for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles.
If finalized, the EPA’s proposal would give manufacturers two additional years before they have to begin implementing these health-protective standards. Under the current, state-of-the-art “Tier 4” standards, which the EPA adopted in 2024, manufacturers must ensure that vehicles emit fewer harmful pollutants, including nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, hydrocarbons, and carbon monoxide. When it adopted these standards in 2024, the EPA gave manufacturers sufficient lead time before the standards would begin to be phased in and several additional years before full implementation of the standards is required. In accordance with this schedule, manufacturers are required to start implementing the standards with their model year 2027 vehicles and will have to obtain Tier 4 certification for all light-duty vehicles by 2030 and for all medium-duty vehicles by 2031. Now, the EPA has proposed to delay the start of this phase-in schedule for two years, which would delay the health protections the standards provide. …