Murphy Introduces Legislation to Eliminate Burdensome Regulations for First Responders

Washington, D.C. — Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D. issued the following statement after introducing the Emergency Vehicles Responsiveness Act, to eliminate burdensome and costly EPA regulations impacting first responders.

"First responders should be solely focused on saving lives and responding to emergencies, not onerous and expensive tailpipe regulations,"  said Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D. "The U.S. military is exempt from such requirements in the interest of operational efficiency and first responders should be treated the same. This legislation is a commonsense action that will ensure funding for our first responders, often barely enough to keep the lights on, can be preserved for more critical needs."

Background
Under current law, the EPA has used its wide-ranging authority to regulate diesel emissions from vehicles. Current regulations have proven costly for fire departments and emergency responders to meet. This legislation amends Section 203 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7522) to exempt diesel-fueled emergency vehicles from EPA’s vehicle diesel emissions control system mandates.