An Earthquake Is Less Disastrous Than Gore

An Earthquake Is Less Disastrous Than Gore
Melanie Scarborough
Democratic delegates arriving in Los Angeles this week may begrateful for the city's transportation network -- buses, commuter airports, taxis, and, yes, individual cars and the awesome network of roads that supports them. But they needn't thank their nominee for president, Al Gore. In fact, if Gore's policies on auto emissions and standards for road and other construction had held swaysince the early 1990s, L.A. might be un-navigable. Here's the story.
In 1993, the Clinton/Gore EPA -- run by Gore's protégé, Carol Browner -- mandated the sale in that state of "the California Car" by the end of 1998. Such a car would be required somehow to produce less than half the emissions of regular cars - though the technology for doing so did not yet exist.

California engineers were frantically trying to develop fuel cells, gas and electric hybrids, or better battery-powered cars to meet the mandate when fate intervened: An earthquake rocked Southern California. Structural losses, including damage to the area's extensive freeway system, were estimated at $14 billion.

But to Californians suffering a thousand points of plight, an arcane statute brought relief. Section 404 of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 1994 requires the General Accounting Office to report to Congress on federal laws, unfunded mandates, and regulatory requirements likely to impede recovery from national disaster. State officials told federal investigators it would be virtually impossible to remove and demolish earthquake debris without violating the Clean Air Act. The National Environmental Policy Act, which requires environmental impact studies before construction can commence, would slow the rebuilding of highways. Abiding by the Clean Water Act was difficult for California under the best of circumstances, nearly impossible in the wake of disaster. And engineers working on developing the California Car said it was unreasonable to expect them to have a salable product within five years, now that their talents were needed to help rebuild the state.

The EPA faced political reality; California had 54 electoral votes. It agreed to relax the state's compliance schedule and delay the imposition of the California car.

It is a testament to bureaucracy’s capacity to strangle that, without red tape to contend with, Californians rebuilt and reopened their six collapsed freeways well ahead of schedule. Work was performed 24 hours a day, seven days a week without incident. Convention visitors who slip away to explore the area might try to imagine the difficulty of getting around with the major arteries clogged – or, as the EPA wishes, navigating freeways in puttering, battery-powered cars.

Delaying the mandate for California Cars did no damage to the environment, either. either. The state’s air quality continues to make phenomenal improvement. Last year marked the first time in five decades - since air-quality records were kept - that the Los Angeles Basin did not have enough pollution to qualify for a single smog-alert day.

Lamentably, with California temporarily off the hook in 1994, the EPA decided to impose the California Car on motorists in the Northeast. New Jersey, Delaware, and New Hampshire balked; Virginia came up with an alternative. Secretary of Natural Resources Becky Norton Dunlop talked to car manufacturers, who told her there was a sensible middle ground. As she details in her forthcoming book, Clearing the Air, to be published by the Kohler Center for Economic Initiative, automakers said they could build a practical ultra-low-emissions car if they weren't compelled to waste time trying to perfect the impractical model mandated by the EPA. The cleaner car would be suitable for sale everywhere except California (still bound by higher standards), and would not be much more expensive because mass marketing would hold down the price.

The EPA initially fought the plan; it was too reasonable for the agency's taste. But the election of a Republican Congress in November helped focus the bureaucratic mind. The 49-State Car become the national model. When EPA Assistant Secretary Mary Nichols left her post, she named its creation as her greatest achievement.

An earthquake spared California in ’94, but the car battle continues to loom. A President Gore and emboldened EPA almost certainly would insist upon it. And the state can’t count on natural disaster always protecting them from the man-made disaster of EPA.

**An Earthquake Is Less Disastrous Than Gore**
**Melanie Scarborough**
Democratic delegates arriving in Los Angeles this week may begrateful for the city's transportation network -- buses, commuter airports, taxis, and, yes, individual cars and the awesome network of roads that supports them. But they needn't thank their nominee for president, Al Gore. In fact, if Gore's policies on auto emissions and standards for road and other construction had held swaysince the early 1990s, L.A. might be un-navigable. Here's the story. In 1993, the Clinton/Gore EPA -- run by Gore's protégé, Carol Browner -- mandated the sale in that state of "the California Car" by the end of 1998. Such a car would be required somehow to produce less than half the emissions of regular cars - though the technology for doing so did not yet exist. California engineers were frantically trying to develop fuel cells, gas and electric hybrids, or better battery-powered cars to meet the mandate when fate intervened: An earthquake rocked Southern California. Structural losses, including damage to the area's extensive freeway system, were estimated at $14 billion. But to Californians suffering a thousand points of plight, an arcane statute brought relief. Section 404 of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 1994 requires the General Accounting Office to report to Congress on federal laws, unfunded mandates, and regulatory requirements likely to impede recovery from national disaster. State officials told federal investigators it would be virtually impossible to remove and demolish earthquake debris without violating the Clean Air Act. The National Environmental Policy Act, which requires environmental impact studies before construction can commence, would slow the rebuilding of highways. Abiding by the Clean Water Act was difficult for California under the best of circumstances, nearly impossible in the wake of disaster. And engineers working on developing the California Car said it was unreasonable to expect them to have a salable product within five years, now that their talents were needed to help rebuild the state. The EPA faced political reality; California had 54 electoral votes. It agreed to relax the state's compliance schedule and delay the imposition of the California car. It is a testament to bureaucracy’s capacity to strangle that, without red tape to contend with, Californians rebuilt and reopened their six collapsed freeways well ahead of schedule. Work was performed 24 hours a day, seven days a week without incident. Convention visitors who slip away to explore the area might try to imagine the difficulty of getting around with the major arteries clogged – or, as the EPA wishes, navigating freeways in puttering, battery-powered cars. Delaying the mandate for California Cars did no damage to the environment, either. either. The state’s air quality continues to make phenomenal improvement. Last year marked the first time in five decades - since air-quality records were kept - that the Los Angeles Basin did not have enough pollution to qualify for a single smog-alert day. Lamentably, with California temporarily off the hook in 1994, the EPA decided to impose the California Car on motorists in the Northeast. New Jersey, Delaware, and New Hampshire balked; Virginia came up with an alternative. Secretary of Natural Resources Becky Norton Dunlop talked to car manufacturers, who told her there was a sensible middle ground. As she details in her forthcoming book, Clearing the Air, to be published by the Kohler Center for Economic Initiative, automakers said they could build a practical ultra-low-emissions car if they weren't compelled to waste time trying to perfect the impractical model mandated by the EPA. The cleaner car would be suitable for sale everywhere except California (still bound by higher standards), and would not be much more expensive because mass marketing would hold down the price. The EPA initially fought the plan; it was too reasonable for the agency's taste. But the election of a Republican Congress in November helped focus the bureaucratic mind. The 49-State Car become the national model. When EPA Assistant Secretary Mary Nichols left her post, she named its creation as her greatest achievement. An earthquake spared California in ’94, but the car battle continues to loom. A President Gore and emboldened EPA almost certainly would insist upon it. And the state can’t count on natural disaster always protecting them from the man-made disaster of EPA.