Yesterday we got the news that Obama’s EPA would block a coal plant. Just breaking from the NYTimes. On Monday among other things President Obama (!) will direct federal regulators to move swiftly to grant 14 states the right to set stricter emissions and efficiency standards then the feds. The Bush EPA rejected this request in December of 07. California and other states have sued over this and now Obama will be taking one more step to reverse yet another bad legacy left by the Bush Administration.
The California standards will reduce overall greenhouse gas emission from passenger cars 18 percent by 2020 and 27 percent by 2030. They will (I believe) go into effect later this year in California, Arizona, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Connecticut, Oregon, Maine, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Vermont, Washington and Massachusetts. In addition Colorado, North Carolina, Florida, Minnesota Iowa and Utah are considering implementing the standards.