Kathy Castor: “I thank the ranking member for yielding the time and for his steadfastness in standing up for the public health of all…”

“I thank the ranking member for yielding the time and for his steadfastness in standing up for the public health of all Americans. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the Republican's bill, S.J. Res. 11. What my Republican colleagues are trying to do here is roll back a very important Environmental Protection Act rule that was developed to tackle air pollution across America under the Clean Air Act, air pollution specifically that comes from heavy-duty trucks and buses. For over 50 years, the Clean Air Act has served us well. It is one of our bedrock environmental laws that improves the air that we breathe. It tackles polluting plants and vehicles through using the latest science and technology to constantly evolve and improve. Oftentimes, the EPA works with industry, as they did here with the trucking industry, to ensure that there is a balance, that we are improving the air we breathe and still maintaining jobs and economic growth over time. {time} 1430 What the Clean Air Act has brought us over the past 50 years has been consistent improvement in the air that we breathe. In fact, there have been dramatic improvements. When we are talking about cleaner air, we are talking about healthier communities and healthier families. Think about your friends and family members with asthma or heart disease or some kind of lung infection.…”