Advance Program

Advance - Basic Information

The Advance Program promotes local actions in attainment areas to reduce ozone and/or fine particle pollution (PM2.5) to help these areas continue to maintain the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The program encourages and supports states, tribes, and local governments that want to take proactive steps to keep their air clean.

Improvements in air quality could:

  • help ensure continued health protection over the long term,
  • provide state, tribal, and local governments with a cushion against potential future violations of the NAAQS,
  • better position an area to avoid a nonattainment designation with respect to any future revised NAAQS,
  • allow communities to better choose control measures and programs that make the most sense  for their area and are cost-effective,
  • result in multi-pollutant benefits; for example, reductions of nitrogen oxides can lead to lower ambient fine particulate matter levels as well as lower ambient ozone levels.

Local areas can take steps to reduce ozone and/or PM on their own, and EPA encourages these proactive efforts. However, some states, tribes, and local governments may prefer to pursue reductions within the Advance program framework with closer involvement and support from EPA.

Please contact your EPA Regional office or Laura Bunte, EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, at (919) 541-0889 or ADVANCE@epa.gov if you have questions about eligibility.  Advance Program contacts in the EPA Regional Offices include:

EPA Region 1  ME, MA, RI, CT, NH, VT

Ozone Advance: Anne Arnold, (617) 918-1047

PM Advance: Alison Simcox, (617) 918-1684

EPA Region 2  NY, NJ, PR, VI

Ozone Advance: Matt Laurita, (212) 637-3895

PM Advance: Ken Fradkin, (212) 637-3702

EPA Region 3  PA, WV, VA, DE, MD, DC

Ozone Advance: Ellen Schmitt, (215) 814-5787

PM Advance: Maria Pino, (215) 814-2181

EPA Region 4  KY, TN, NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS

Ozone and PM Advance: Kelly Sheckler, (404) 562-9222

EPA Region 5  OH, MI, IN, IL, WI, MN

Ozone and PM Advance: Steve Rosenthal, (312) 886-6052

EPA Region 6  AR, LA, OK, NM, TX

Ozone and PM Advance:  Ken Boyce, (214) 665-7259

EPA Region 7  IA, MO, KS, NE

Ozone and PM Advance: Amy Bhesania, (913) 551-7147

EPA Region 8  ND, SD, MT, WY, CO, UT

Ozone Advance: Jody Ostendorf, (303) 312-7814

PM Advance: Crystal Ostigaard, (303) 312-6602

EPA Region 9  NV, AZ, CA, HI

Ozone Advance: Karina O’Connor, (775) 434-8176

PM Advance:  Wienke Tax, (415) 947-4192

EPA Region 10 AK, ID, OR, WA

Ozone Advance: Claudia Vaupel, (206) 553-6121

PM Advance: Justin Spenillo, (206) 553-6125