Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Krekorian said Thursday the city should stop purchasing most types of vehicles that have internal combustion engines.
Krekorian co-authored a motion with City Council President-Elect Nury Martinez to change the city's policy on its vehicle purchases.
"For decades, California has been the nation's leader in reducing auto emissions and improving fuel efficiency," Krekorian said. "We have changed an industry in a way that has had a dramatic, positive impact on the global environment."
Under their proposal, an exception would be given for public safety vehicles when there is no cleaner alternative.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, internal combustion engines can have a significant effect on air quality and people's overall health. The air toxins emitted from "stationary engines" include formaldehyde, acrolein, acetaldehyde and methanol.
Internal combustion engines also emit air pollutants that are created when fuel is burned, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and other particulate matter.
In the same motion, the two council members called for an ordinance requiring all city departments to purchase vehicles only from manufacturers that recognize the authority of the California Air Resources Board to set greenhouse gas and zero-emission vehicle standards and meet those standards.
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The rule would be enforced beginning Jan. 1, if adopted by the full City Council.
Krekorian said the motion is a response to the action by the Trump administration, which on Sept. 18 revoked California's waiver to set its own vehicle emissions standards.
In response, California and 22 other states sued the federal government to maintain the Golden State's right to set its own standards, which the councilman argued is guaranteed under the 1970 Federal Clean Air Act.
Krekorian also requested that the city develop a plan to convert the city's fleet to zero-emission vehicles where technically feasible by 2028, consistent with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti's "Sustainability pLAn."
