Dear Senator…: or Representative…:

The Department of Environmental Quality is proposing a temporary rule to implement the provisions of SB 249, unanimously approved in the 2013 legislative session. SB 249 authorizes DEQ to administer federal clean diesel projects in accordance with federal grant guidelines rather than narrower state guidelines originally established when the clean diesel program was launched. DEQ will propose a temporary rule at the October meeting of the Environmental Quality Commission so that federal diesel emission reduction projects can begin immediately and reduce environmental harm associated with exposure to diesel engine exhaust. A permanent rulemaking is scheduled for consideration at the March 2014 meeting of the EQC.

For more information about the rule, please contact Kevin Downing, 503.229.6549, downing.kevin@deq.state.or.us.