By: Almeta Cooper, National Manager, Health Justice
Date: July 29, 2026
About: Docket No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2026-0728-0114
To: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
My name is Almeta Cooper. I live in Washington, DC. I am the National Manager for Health Justice at Moms Clean Air Force. Moms Clean Air Force consists of 1.6 million moms, dads, and caregivers united in protecting clean air and children’s health.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. As an African American mother and grandmother, I urge EPA not to weaken tailpipe pollution protections for new heavy-duty diesel vehicles, a move that would increase harmful smog and soot-forming pollution that’s dangerous to human health. I urge EPA to value and protect the health and safety of children, pregnant women and those 65 and older who will be disproportionately harmed by weakening the emissions standards in the 2023 Final Rule for Calendar years 2027 through 2055.
My family, my adorable 11-month-old grandson, my neighbors, and I will be affected by greater exposure to smog and soot-forming pollution if the proposed amendments are adopted. Reducing poisonous tailpipe emissions from new heavy-duty diesel vehicles, including dangerous nitrogen oxides (NOx), is very important to our children’s health. Children are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of traffic pollution. Air pollution makes asthma symptoms worse and increases children’s risk of respiratory infection.
Nationally, Black children are two times more at risk than white children to have asthma, and in Washington, DC, 9.6 % of Black children have asthma. Weakening emission standards will increase air pollution. In 2026 and beyond, increased pollution means increased health expenses for families who are already facing increased healthcare costs and potentially decreased access to necessary healthcare.
Concern about air pollution related to trucks and Washington, DC, air quality is not occurring in a vacuum. DC again received an F grade for ozone smog and a D for soot pollution in the 2026 American Lung Association State of the Air Report. There is no safe threshold of PM2.5 exposure, since health impacts are observed even at very low concentrations, including below current standards. This year following July 4th, DC recorded the world’s worst short-term urban air quality compounded with the dangerous air quality related to the Canadian wildfire smoke.
In closing, I urge EPA not to undermine its duty to protect public health from increased air pollution and to retain the existing Clean Trucks standards adopted in 2023.