1. (1) Exhaust emissions from heavy-duty diesel engines used in trucks and buses traveling within Rhode Island contribute significantly to air pollution within the state;
2. (2) Heavy-duty diesel engines in a poor state of repair emit higher levels of pollution than engines that are well maintained;
3. (3) Citizens of Rhode Island frequently raise concerns about emissions from heavy-duty diesel engines;
4. (4) These emissions diminish the quality of life and health of our citizens;
5. (5) Technology exists to determine the level of exhaust emissions from heavy-duty vehicles;
6. (6) Maintenance and repair procedures are available that can readily be employed to correct unacceptable exhaust emissions;
7. (7) Rhode Island is a party to a memorandum of understanding among states of the northeast United States in which each state agreed to use its best efforts to implement heavy-duty diesel testing programs consistent with the elements of the memorandum of understanding; and
8. (8) It is in the public interest to establish a program regulating exhaust emissions from heavy-duty diesel trucks and buses traveling within Rhode Island.

The general assembly finds and declares that:

History of Section.
P.L. 2000, ch. 280, § 1.