New Clean Air Challenges. Since the Clean Air Act was enacted in 1970, air pollution has been cut more than 30 percent, even as our population and economy have continued to grow. Since 1993, the number of Americans whose communities meet federal air quality standards has grown by 43 million. Yet these gains are threatened because Americans drive more than ever (up from 1 trillion miles a year in 1970 to 2.5 trillion in 1997) and increasingly favor higher-polluting SUV’s, minivans and other light-duty trucks (now 50 percent of the new car market).

• Apply a uniform tailpipe standard to passenger cars, SUVs and other light-duty trucks, producing cars that are 77 percent cleaner -- and light-duty trucks up to 95 percent cleaner -- than those on the road today.
• Reduce average sulfur levels in gasoline by up to 90 percent from 300 to 30 parts per million. These reductions are needed because sulfur fouls catalytic converters, the units that remove pollutants from auto exhaust.

Once fully implemented in 2030, these new measures will reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (a key component of smog) by [74] percent, and soot by [84] percent – the equivalent to removing 164 million cars from the road.

Dramatic Improvements in Public Health. Americans of all ages will reap the health benefits of these new clean air protections. The projected costs to meet these standards – about $100 for cars, $200 for light-duty trucks, and two cents per gallon of gas – are far outweighed by the projected public health benefits. Annually, these benefits will include preventing: