By: Elizabeth Hauptman, Michigan Field Organizer
Date: July 29, 2026
About: Docket No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2026-0728-0114
To: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
My name is Elizabeth Hauptman, and I live in Livingston County, Michigan. On behalf of Moms Clean Air Force’s nearly 34,000 members in my state, I am speaking out today because EPA’s decision to weaken lifesaving protections against smog- and soot-forming pollution from new heavy-duty diesel vehicles is heartbreaking. These protections are not just rules. They are shields for our children, for families like mine, and for every community that breathes the air around highways and industrial corridors. Undermining these protections now will have real consequences for real children.
Pollution harms all of us, but children suffer the most. My son has asthma, and every day, I see how air pollution worsens his disease. Because of him and the more than 166,000 children in Michigan who struggle with asthma, we need these standards stronger than ever. Michigan has some of the highest childhood asthma rates in the country, and yet EPA is turning back the clock, leaving children more exposed to harm.
Children are uniquely vulnerable. They breathe faster than adults, spend more time outside, and are physically active, putting their developing lungs directly in the path of pollution. They are small, standing at tailpipe height, breathing in the very emissions this rollback allows. Watching my son gasp for air after playing outside, rushing home to give him his nebulizer, or worse, an emergency room—this is a pain no parent and child should endure. Yet this rollback puts countless families in the same terrifying position.
Asthma disproportionately affects children of color. Latino children are twice as likely to die from asthma, and Black children are 10 times more likely to die than white non-Hispanic children. Rolling back these protections is not only a public health failure. It is an environmental injustice. Our children deserve to breathe safely, no matter their zip code or their skin color.
We need action. We cannot wait. Michigan families, especially communities of color, need strong standards to protect our health. For the sake of my son and all the children of Michigan, I am asking you to abandon this misguided proposal and commit to the strongest protections possible for heavy-duty tailpipe pollution.
Please do not let our children choke on your inaction. Their lives and their futures depend on the choices you make today. It is time to put the pedal to the metal on clean air and not slam on the brakes.
Thank you.