By: Jayne Black, Wisconsin Field Organizer
Date: July 29, 2026
About: Docket No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2026-0728-0114
To: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Thank you for the opportunity to testify. My name is Jayne Black, and I am a Wisconsin Field Organizer with Moms Clean Air Force, where we work to protect children from the health impacts of air pollution. I live in De Pere, Wisconsin.
On behalf of Moms Clean Air Force and our more than 18,000 members across Wisconsin, I urge EPA not to weaken protections against tailpipe pollution from new heavy-duty diesel vehicles. Stronger transportation standards are essential to safeguarding the health of our children and communities, and the need for action is urgent.
Poor air quality is already a serious problem in Wisconsin. The American Lung Association has given the Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha metro area an F grade for both ground-level ozone and short-term particle pollution, ranking it among the worst in the nation. Transportation is a significant contributor of harmful air pollutants like nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, and soot—all of which damage public health and well-being.
For me, this issue is deeply personal. I am a mother of four children, two of whom are directly impacted by NOx emissions from heavy-duty vehicles. My daughter, who has multiple sclerosis, experiences flare-ups and relapses triggered by pollution. My son suffers from asthma, which is exacerbated by tailpipe emissions. I worry that without strong protections, our children and future generations will face even greater health burdens from rising air pollution.
The data underscores these concerns. According to the 2020 National Emissions Inventory, mobile sources in Wisconsin account for 24% of total volatile organic compound emissions and 55% of nitrogen oxide emissions—the pollutants that form ground-level ozone. Their impact on ozone levels exceeds that of power plants and industrial sources combined. Milwaukee Public Schools, the state’s largest district with 156 schools, sits in an urban area surrounded by interstate highways. Milwaukee County received failing grades for ozone and PM 2.5 in the American Lung Association’s 2026 State of the Air report. Reducing pollution from transportation is vital to improving the air our children breathe, especially since they are legally required to attend schools where their health is compromised by tailpipe emissions.
For the nearly 77,000 children in Wisconsin living with asthma, avoidable tailpipe pollution from heavy-duty vehicles translates into doctor and emergency room visits, missed school days, medical costs, and emotional stress for families. My own son’s asthma is life-altering, and the medications he takes to manage it also affect his mental health, contributing to depression and anxiety.
I am urging EPA to maintain the strongest possible pollution protections for new heavy-duty diesel. Please protect our health, our children, and our future by maintaining and strengthening these standards.