City Council opposes EPA proposal to rescind greenhouse-gas endangerment finding

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Sept. 26 to oppose a federal Environmental Protection Agency proposal that would rescind the 2009 greenhouse-gas endangerment finding, a federal determination that underpins greenhouse-gas regulation under the Clean Air Act.

The resolution was introduced and presented by Councilmember Yaroslavsky, who described the endangerment finding as the legal foundation for regulating greenhouse gases from vehicles and other sources. “Without it, the framework for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles and other sources collapses,” he said.

Yaroslavsky cited local costs linked to climate-driven events and asked the council to defend tools that reduce emissions. He told council members that the Palisades fire caused more than $350 million in direct damage to public infrastructure and that broader economic and insurance losses reached an estimated $25 billion. He also said extreme heat already costs the region nearly $5 billion annually in lost worker productivity, a figure he said will more than double by midcentury.

The resolution directs the city to oppose any federal action that weakens greenhouse-gas regulation and to coordinate with other cities and states working to preserve national standards.

Outcome: The council recorded 11 ayes and approved the resolution.

Ending: The council’s vote instructs city staff to join statewide and national efforts opposing the EPA rollback and to communicate the city’s opposition to the agency and to federal policymakers.