Questions and Answers: CA Waiver Edition

UPDATE #2, Wednesday 10/31, 3:30 PM: We've learned that the good folks at the Natural Resources Defense Council are collecting questions that have been submitted, so that they can compare to those ultimately posed to Johnson and post the findings on their blog. Readers who have sent in questions should also send them to Deborah Faulkner, dfaulkner@nrdc.org.

UPDATE, Wednesday 10/31, 1:25 PM: Kevin Grandia at Desmogblog has piled on with a great call to action, and some more possible questions.

Back in July, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson justified his agency's slow response to California's request to enforce its own auto emissions standards by citing the need to review over 60,000 public comments. With California and other states literally on the verge of suing the government for failing to rule on the waiver application, we've  learned that the public will have one more chance to possibly weigh in this week.

That's because on Thursday afternoon at 3 PM, Johnson will be the inaugural participant in a new online interactive forum called "Ask EPA," discussing the agency's efforts to "promote clean and dependable energy solutions." Some questions we'd love to see asked (in other words, feel encouraged to submit!):

• When can we expect a ruling on California's application? What does Johnson think of the state's lawsuit?
• While California and other states are suing the EPA, the State Department has cited their efforts to significantly lower heat-trapping gases (18% by 2020) as positive examples of U.S. action on climate change. Doesn't EPA's failure to give these states a final go-ahead undercut the State Department's diplomacy?
• What did Johnson think of the non-partisan Congressional Research Service report concluding that the state has a strong case, and that its position was only enhanced by the Supreme Court's decision in Mass. v. EPA?
• What has Johnson uncovered in his promised thorough review of public comments? How many citizens agreed with the auto industry and the White House that, for the first time in over 90 requests since the EPA's inception, state innovation ought to be curtailed? 

Feel free to chime in with any questions we missed...