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Connecticut Low Emission Vehicles II (LEV II) Program {Clean Car} The Connecticut Low Emission Vehicles II (LEV II) program requires that all new vehicles sold in Connecticut, beginning with model year 2008, meet strict California emission standards. Motor vehicles certified to California emission standards meet more stringent standards for non-methane organic gases (NMOG), hydrocarbons (HC), nitrogen oxides (NOx); and carbon monoxide (CO), and undergo more extensive testing and quality control than vehicles certified to the federal standards. Mobile source pollution accounts for approximately fifty percent of all air pollution emitted in Connecticut and throughout the Northeast. Implementation of the LEV II program will help meet health-based air pollution standards, achieve significant air quality benefits, and reduce people’s exposure to harmful air pollutants from motor vehicle exhaust. LEV II creates four new emission categories for vehicles: LEV - Low Emission ULEV - Ultra-Low Emission SULEV - Super-Ultra-Low Emission ZEV - Zero-Emission Under CT State Law beginning with model year 2008: What does LEV II apply to?
How will you know if a vehicle can be sold in Connecticut? A Vehicle Emission Control Information Label is applied under the hood of every vehicle. On this label, you’ll find text indicating that the vehicle conforms to the California regulations. If the vehicle complies with California regulations it can be sold in Connecticut. {Label} LEV II and Greenhouse Gases Mobile sources are also a major source of greenhouse gases and Connecticut is involved in regional and national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Therefore, Connecticut modified the LEV II program to adopt California’s tailpipe greenhouse gas emissions standards beginning with the 2009 model year. EPA granted the waiver of preemption for California’s program on June 30, 2009, and the Connecticut Greenhouse gas standards are effective and enforceable.
The federal Clean Air Act (CAA) requires the federal United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set nationwide emission standards; however the CAA limits a state’s ability to adopt its own motor vehicle emission standards. Under the CAA, California is the only state allowed to adopt its own motor vehicle emission standards and the EPA must approve those standards by granting a waiver before California can enforce them. Under section 177 of the CAA, a state may adopt motor vehicle emission standards that are different from federal standards only if those emission standards are identical to California standards for which a waiver has been granted. Connecticut has adopted the California emission standards because they are more protective of public health and the environment than federal emission standards.
LEV II, in the final analysis, is about public health and will reduce the exposure to air pollutants of people in Connecticut.
Current TopicsConnecticut Low Emission Vehicle Amendments, Hearing Report dated December 8, 2008 (PDF) LEVII Regulation (PDF) Connecticut Low Emission Vehicle/Greenhouse Gas Standards, Hearing Report dated August 25, 2005 (PDF, 8.4mb)
Related LinksLearn about the Smart Growth Network, an organizational effort to restore community and vitality within center cities and older suburbs through a town-centered, transit and pedestrian approach to sustainability.
Content Last Updated on December 16, 2009
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