President Donald Trump plans to announce he will reconsider fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks at the American Center for Mobility today. Known as the Cafe Standards, the miles per gallon (mpg) rates were set by the Obama administration despite pleas from auto manufacturers that said the standards would significantly raise vehicle prices and cost jobs. President Obama used the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) emission targets as part of his strategy to combat climate change.
Prefacing the new standards with that in mind, the EPA published guidelines for cars and trucks that required a fleet-wide average of 54.5 mph by 2025.
Vehicle costs have steadily fallen since the 1990s, but the price of a new car has increased $6,200 since 2009 over the previous trend. Chief executives from 20 auto companies sent President Trump a letter stating the new standards will put thousands or as many as a million jobs at risk.
While in Detroit, Trump will also discuss his plans to roll back federal red tape and other plans for creating more American jobs. The current administration calls the CAFE standards part of Obama’s “burdensome regulations” that need to be somewhere between 27.5 and 54.5 mpg and allow market forces to determine what consumers want to buy.
Auto CEOs Say Obama-Era Fuel Efficiency Mandates Will Cost 1 Million Jobs https://t.co/LH7AMegrOL via @dailycaller
— Christopher D. White (@ZanderKelly30) February 13, 2017
Stringent new standards
The CAFE announcement won’t have an immediate effect as the EPA needs to first roll out the new emission standards.
Then there are the expected lawsuits from various green groups on relaxing the stringent new standards, though those may take years. States will still be allowed to set their own tailpipe emission standards like California does for its drivers.
In 2012, Obama set CAFE standards for vehicles built between 2017 to 2025, with an agreement to finish a midterm evaluation in 2018 for model years after 2022.
But a week before Obama left office, the EPA ended the 2018 review process and kept the tough standards set in place for vehicles built from 2022 to 2025. Car manufacturers pushed back as the EPA deviated from normal procedures.
"Obama Fuel Economy Regs Are Making Cars Way More Expensive" https://t.co/9BIsr5T5kK
— hockey schtick (@hockeyschtick1) March 15, 2016
Green groups freak out
Senior White House officials noted the EPA intentionally ignored vast amounts of information showing how the costs far outweighed any perceived benefits, a requirement the EPA has to follow.
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which represents twelve large car companies, asked current EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt last month to relax the onerous emissions standards.
The vehicle average under Trump’s expected mileage requirements would equate to roughly 36 mpg by 2025. Green groups are already champing at the bit and threatening to sue if Trump loosens Obama’s CAFE standards, claiming they will cost consumers money at the pump, increase our dependence on oil, and raise carbon dioxide emissions.
Trump campaigned largely on making America energy independent, creating new jobs, and stimulating the economy.
