California Newsroom

Major investigation shows local governments are increasingly exploiting a loophole in the Clean Air Act, leaving more than 21 million Americans with air that’s dirtier than they realize. California leads the nation it its use.

First pushed through by the Republican senator and climate denier Jim Inhofe, the rule has become a "regulatory escape hatch" for states that want to meet federal air-quality standards.

Congressional investigators say the use of a regulatory loophole to erase smoke pollution from the official record is on the rise.

Rob Adams, a 23-year-old Black man, was running away from San Bernardino police while allegedly holding a firearm when he was shot and killed last July.

A decade ago, about 200,000 Californians lived in areas where they were exposed to extreme smoke. By 2020, 4.5 million did.