PRINTER'S NO. 3167
No. 243 Session of 1994
INTRODUCED BY CESSAR, PETRARCA, SATHER, TANGRETTI, LESCOVITZ,
OLASZ, BUNT, GODSHALL, HERSHEY, MARSICO AND SAURMAN,
FEBRUARY 2, 1994
ADOPTED, FEBRUARY 2, 1994
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
1 Calling for the withdrawal of the Commonwealth from the Ozone
2 Transport Commission.
3 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania General Assembly is of the opinion
4 that Congress under the Constitution of the United States cannot
5 usurp states' rights; and
6 WHEREAS, The Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) is a commission
7 established by Congress under the Clean Air Act (Public Law 95-
8 95, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 et seq.); and
9 WHEREAS, The Ozone Transport Commission is pre-empting State
10 authority and making decisions that are the responsibility of
11 state legislatures; and
12 WHEREAS, Congress has exempted the Ozone Transport Commission
13 from public accountability; and
14 WHEREAS, Authority without accountability is unacceptable;
15 and
16 WHEREAS, The Ozone Transport Commission has not done a
17 credible cost-benefit analysis of the factors involved in
1 cleaning up the air; and
2 WHEREAS, The Ozone Transport Commission's primary strategy
3 for implementing ozone correction strategies is a misguided
4 attempt to mandate the use of the so-called "California Car," or
5 Low Emission Vehicle; and
6 WHEREAS, A successful "California Car" has not yet been
7 developed; and
8 WHEREAS, No one can know the cost or success rates of a car
9 that has not yet been invented; and
10 WHEREAS, The Ozone Transport Commission is trying to force
11 the adoption of the so-called "California Car" upon states which
12 are unwilling to act with imprudent haste; and
13 WHEREAS, "California Car" proponents have obscured the fact
14 that starting this year (1994) new cars and trucks are subject
15 to much stricter pollution controls under the Clean Air Act and
16 will be much cleaner than any earlier vehicles; and
17 WHEREAS, This new regulation and anticipated improvements
18 will help make the so-called "California Car" obsolete; and
19 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania General Assembly believe the Ozone
20 Transport Commission's plan to petition the Environmental
21 Protection Agency for the "California Car's" adoption in all
22 states to be poorly conceived and lacking justification; and
23 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania General Assembly believe that
24 Pennsylvanians, not a Federal bureaucracy, are best positioned
25 to lead this Commonwealth to triumph in cleaning up our air and
26 will use pollution control strategies based on sound scientific
27 data and reasonable economic principles; and
28 WHEREAS, It is the objective of the Pennsylvania General
29 Assembly to comply with the Clean Air Act in every practical way
30 while not burdening Pennsylvanians with unnecessary expenses and
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1 inconveniences which do not result in significant improvement of
2 air quality; and
3 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania General Assembly strongly object to
4 any action on the part of the Ozone Transport Commission to
5 mandate the "California Car"; and
6 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania General Assembly strongly object to
7 the usurpation of states' rights and the enforcement of
8 impractical, expensive and useless regulations; therefore be it
9 RESOLVED (the Senate concurring), That the General Assembly
10 of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, direct the Governor to
11 officially withdraw the Commonwealth from the Northeast Ozone
12 Transport Commission if the commission proceeds with its action
13 to petition the Environmental Protection Agency to mandate the
14 "California Car."
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