Press Releases
08/17/2022
Attorney General Tong Urges Postal Service to Address Deficiencies in Environmental Review Used to Justify Purchase of Gas-Powered Vehicle Fleet
(Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong today joined a multistate coalition in a comment letter supporting the U.S. Postal Service’s notice of intent to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and purported commitment to purchasing a greater percentage of electric vehicles. The notice follows a lawsuit filed by Connecticut and others alleging that the Postal Service relied on a flawed environmental analysis to justify its purchase of up to 90 percent gas-powered vehicles in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). In today's letter, the coalition calls on the Postal Service to expand the scope of the Supplemental EIS to address these deficiencies and to halt any further activity relating to the purchase of these vehicles until this additional review is completed.“The U.S. Postal Service has a generational opportunity to transition to modern, zero-emissions electric vehicles. This supplemental review could be an important, positive step -- if done well, including with the most current information. They need to use full, accurate data on electric vehicle costs, performance, and fuel prices, as well as the potential benefits to local air quality. USPS must halt any actions relating to the purchase of new vehicles until this review is completed,” said Attorney General Tong.
Postal Service vehicles are on the road six days a week in every community in the United States. While these vehicles play a critical role in delivering the nation’s mail, they also emit significant amounts of greenhouse gases and other hazardous air pollutants. Many Postal Service facilities are located within environmental justice communities that are already overburdened by pollution. As most of the Postal Service's vehicles near the end of their useful lives, the Postal Service has the opportunity to convert its fleet to zero-emission, electric vehicles, a change that would reduce pollution in these overburdened communities and help tackle the climate crisis. Instead, the Postal Service relied on a faulty environmental analysis to justify replacing up to 165,000 of its delivery vehicles with ninety percent fossil-fuel powered vehicles over the next ten years.
In today’s letter, the coalition expresses its support for the Postal Service’s decision to prepare a Supplemental EIS for the Next Generation Delivery Vehicles Acquisitions program. However, the coalition makes clear that the scope of the supplemental review should be significantly expanded to address deficiencies in the Final EIS and Record of Decision. In particular, the Postal Service must redo its analysis with more accurate data on electric vehicle costs, performance, and fuel prices, and with greater attention to environmental justice and addressing the climate crisis. Further, no work should occur under the Postal Service’s existing contract with Oshkosh Defense until it completes this Supplemental EIS.
Attorney General Tong joins the attorneys general of California, New York, Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, as well as the City of New York and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, in filing the letter.
A copy of the letter is available here.
Assistant Attorney General William E. Dornbos and Chief of the Environment Section Matthew Levine assisted the Attorney General with this matter.
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