On the recordDecember 21, 2010
I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 5809, an act to reauthorize the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act, or DERA. Since its enactment in 2005, DERA has provided significant public health benefits, improved our national energy security, and helped create jobs. Today's bill will authorize the continuation of this successful program for 2012 through 2016. It also slightly modifies the program to improve its effectiveness and administration. Diesel engines are the workhorses of the economy. They are used to take students to school, to build roads and buildings, and to transport goods over roads, rails, and waterways. Diesel engines have long had a reputation for being dirty, but that reputation is changing. New diesel engines and vehicles must meet tough standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency. However, there are millions of older diesel engines now in use that have very high emissions, causing a number of public health and environmental problems, including premature death. These engines have long useful lives, up to 25 years, so absent incentives to clean them up, we will be suffering from their pollution for a long time. DERA is designed to use voluntary partnership approaches to reduce pollution from these existing engines and vehicles. DERA authorizes EPA and the States to use loans and grants to help clean up existing dirty diesel engines and vehicles.
