The US House of Representatives has voted to block enforcement of strict new air quality standards, letting cities and counties that do not currently measure up off the hook. The air quality standards have been under attack since they were proposed. In the courts they have been attacked as arbitrary numbers based on questionable science. The EPA is currently waiting for a hearing at the Supreme Court to decide whether or not they have to take into account the cost of compliance - not just health effects - when setting new standards. Environmental groups and supporters of the standards claimed erasing the non-compliance list would allow communities to contend that they do not have an air quality problem when the data indicate that they do. The revised standards limited the allowable level of ozone, an essential part of smog, to 0.08ppm (0.12ppm).
