Joint Public Hearing on the Clean Car Rule
May 2, 2022
The Environmental Improvement Board (EIB) and the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Air Quality Control Board (AQCB) will conduct a virtual and in-person joint public hearing on May 4 & 5 to consider the Clean Car Rule proposed by the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) and the City of Albuquerque’s Environmental Health Department (EHD). NMED and EHD anticipate the hearing will last approximately two days with the EIB and AQCB deliberating and potentially deciding to adopt the rule at the conclusion of the hearing. The EIB and AQCB will consider the proposed rule and decide whether to adopt it as proposed or with amendments.
The proposed Clean Car Rule reduces emissions from the transportation sector by making more low-emission and zero-emission passenger vehicles, like fully electric vehicles, available to consumers. If adopted, the Clean Car Rule is projected to eliminate about 130,000 tons of greenhouse gases and over 1,700 tons of harmful ozone-forming air pollution in New Mexico by 2050.
“The rule will bring about 3,800 additional zero-tailpipe emission passenger cars – like fully electric vehicles – to dealer showrooms in New Mexico each year,” said NMED Cabinet Secretary James Kenney. “Without the Clean Car Rule, those cars and trucks will ship to other states with such rules. With a greater selection of electric cars and trucks, New Mexicans can go electric and pay less for every mile they drive.”
The Clean Car Rule will also help address ground-level ozone in Bernalillo County. “The Clean Car Rule will help clean up the air we breathe,” said Angel Martinez, Jr., Director of Albuquerque’s Environmental Health Department. “We know that action is needed to reduce ground-level ozone now to sustain Albuquerque and protect public health.”
The proposed rule has undergone improvements in response to public comment and stakeholder engagement over the past 11 months. It is more protective of public health and the environment than the federal government currently requires. Details on how to watch and submit public comments on the Clean Car Rule joint hearing are available on the NMED Event Calendar and AQCB webpage.