Boise Mayor and Climate Mayors Chair, Lauren McLean today issued the following statement in response to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s proposal for an unprecedented new annual fee on electric and hybrid vehicles included in the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill.

Climate Mayors Chair, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean and Executive Director Kate Wright denounced the Environmental Protection Agency’s loosening of the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), a major federal protection that has been in place for more than a decade. The final rule, announced today, weakens an air pollution safeguard designed to limit mercury, arsenic, and other toxic pollution from power plants. These standards were created to protect people, the environment and reduce health risks for pregnant women, infants, and other vulnerable people.

Climate Mayors, C40 Cities, and ICLEI urge NHTSA to maintain the existing Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards for passenger cars and light trucks, set in 2024, rather than adopt the SAFE Rule III. Cities, towns and villages across the United States rely on these federal protections to shield residents from climate and air pollution harms and to support their own investments in EVs and charging infrastructure.

This guidebook provides step-by-step guidance, tested templates, and real-world examples for cities and communities across the United States to accelerate climate action and build the resilient partnerships necessary for effective climate responses at any scale.

This resource illustrates the roles that cities will play in implementing IRA and BIL, identifies the tools and resources local governments need to deploy federal climate funds most efficiently and effectively, and recommends what federal agencies, state governments, funders, and climate advocates can do to help.

This report highlights key policy priorities and local success stories that are contributing to a green and equitable recovery and have a demonstrated track record of creating jobs and building resilience. Created in partnership with the Rocky Mountain Institute.

In 2018, Climate Mayors launched an EV Purchasing Collaborative which has expanded from city governments to include county governments, transit agencies, port authorities, colleges and universities. Collectively, we have committed to purchasing over 4,000 EVs. The Collaborative is an unprecedented cooperation of Climate Mayors cities to leverage their collective buying power and accelerate the conversion of municipal fleets to electric—sending a powerful signal to the global car market and helping America to maintain its commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement.