Corporate Average Fuel Economy
-
In a plan drawn with the EPA and NHTSA, the Trump administration is aiming to take vehicle emissions authority away from California.
-
California deal interrupts White House emissions rollback effort
Automakers frustrated with the lack of progress toward federal fuel economy and emissions standards made a deal with California.
Eric C. Evarts -
California sues Trump administration again over fuel economy fines
The federal government now plans to freeze fines in the enforcement of fuel economy regulations, and California has waged a lawsuit against the plan.
Eric C. Evarts -
Report: EPA delays proposed fuel economy plan until September—or later
The EPA has reportedly once again delayed its plans to reveal a plan to freeze federal fuel economy and emissions standards at 2020 levels.
Eric C. Evarts -
Trump administration freezes fines for fuel-economy violations
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has acted to freeze fines for companies that violate federal fleet fuel economy standards.
Eric C. Evarts -
23 states now oppose EPA fuel economy freeze
The governors of 23 states plus Puerto Rico have urged the Trump administration to reconsider its proposal to freeze the federal fuel efficiency standards through 2026
Eric C. Evarts -
The Senate on Thursday confirmed acting EPA administrator Andrew Wheeler to head the agency. Since Wheeler became the acting administrator last July, he has released plans to unwind rising emissions and attendant fuel economy standards enacted under President Obama, and to rescind California's half-century-old authority to set tighter emissions standards than the federal government. He's moved twice to loosen emissions standards on coal-fired powerplants and promoted "clean coal" at a U.N. global-warming conference in Poland in December, and axed the EPA's office of the science advisor. DON'T...
-
EPA cuts off fuel-economy talks with California
The Trump administration has ended talks with California aimed at settling their differences over increasing fuel economy and tightening emissions regulations, Reuters reported Thursday, citing an unnamed government official. In August, the EPA, led by Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, released...
Eric C. Evarts -
Ford investigates its own fuel-economy testing methods
Ford announced on Thursday that it opened an investigation into the fuel economy testing it does to receive official EPA ratings and federal certification to sell its vehicles in the U.S. The company plans to start by retesting its 2019 Ranger midsize pickup, after employees raised concerns through...
Eric C. Evarts -
Mileage or money? Fiat Chrysler pays for missing fuel economy targets
It turns out there's more than one way for automakers to meet fuel-economy targets. One is to develop and sell more fuel-efficient cars and trucks. The other—as demonstrated over the years by quite a few automakers—is to pay fuel economy fines to the U.S. Treasury as a course of doing...
Eric C. Evarts -
Oil industry funding supports campaign to roll back fuel-economy rules
A new investigative report by the New York Times has revealed the puppeteer pulling the strings in the Trump administration's efforts to undo fuel-economy and emissions improvements: no surprise, the oil industry. Backed by America's largest refiners and organizations tied to or funded by the Koch...
Eric C. Evarts -
California girds for battle with EPA over fuel economy
Last Friday, California released a 400-page repudiation of the Trump administration's plan to freeze fuel economy standards and revoke California's statutory right to set its own limits on vehicle emissions. The report comes in response to the EPA and NHTSA's proposed Safer Affordable Fuel...
Eric C. Evarts -
Readers who want to make their voices heard in objection to (or support of) the EPA proposal to freeze fuel economy standards have until tomorrow to get their comments in. The EPA proposed in early August to undo Obama-era rules requiring cars to reach increasingly stringent fuel-economy targets through 2025. Called the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient Vehicles Rule, the proposal would freeze the standards at 2020 levels through 2026. Although cars have already become more efficient, the upcoming years were expected to extend such efficiency gains to light trucks, such as pickups and large...
-
California considers boosting electric-car rebate to $4,500
The California Air Resources Board will discuss Thursday and Friday raising the state's electric vehicle rebate to offset the expiration of federal tax credits for the two largest electric-carmakers, Tesla and GM. The state offers a $2,500 subsidy for electric-car purchases. CARB is considering...
Eric C. Evarts -
Commentary: How to make your voice heard on fuel economy freeze
Drivers are not helpless in the face of government plans to roll back fuel economy standards. A joint August proposal from the EPA and NHTSA to freeze planned increases in fuel economy standards is out for public comments until Oct. 23. Public comments can make a difference. DON'T MISS: Trump...
Eric C. Evarts -
California meets with federal regulators over fuel-economy rollback
Trump administration officials met with California regulators Wednesday to discuss the EPA and NHTSA's proposal to freeze fuel economy and emissions standards from 2020 through 2026. The proposal would rescind scheduled increases planned under the Obama administration, which would have raised...
Eric C. Evarts -
Best deals on green cars, Tesla scrutiny, Swiss stop diesels, EPA pushback: Today's Car News
The SEC issues subpoenas to Tesla over CEO Elon Musk's plan to take the company private. Switzerland halts registrations of some diesels from Mercedes-Benz and Porsche. New records show internal pushback at the EPA over freezing fuel-economy regulations. And we run down the best deals on green cars...
Eric C. Evarts -
EPA staff disputed fuel-economy freeze would save lives
What's $132 billion between regulators? Such is the breadth of the discrepancy between the estimates of what the government's final proposal to roll back fuel-economy standards would save American drivers, and what EPA staffers said it would cost. A Reuters report on Tuesday revealed comments from...
Eric C. Evarts -
President Donald Trump and federal officials on Thursday formally proposed scaling back Obama-era regulations for fuel economy and cited safety concerns that lighter, more fuel-efficient cars would be more dangerous on American roadways. The 978-page proposal outlines federal guidelines to freeze emissions standards at 2020 levels and potentially sets up a showdown with states over long-running rules that let California and 13 other states adopt more stringent pollution standards. California and 16 other states have already launched a preemptive lawsuit in case the Trump administration rolled...
-
Report: Trump administration set to roll back emissions regulations as early as next week
The rollback of federal emissions and fuel economy standards that President Donald Trump promised during his campaign could be released as early as next week, according to a new Bloomberg report. A person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the administration will roll out proposals from...
Eric C. Evarts -
Report: Trump EPA plans to cancel California emissions waiver
The EPA is planning to cancel the special waiver that California has relied on since 1970 to set its own emissions standards, according to a Bloomberg report. As part of its plan to reverse a program to steadily tighten fuel economy standards that it coordinates with California and the National...
Eric C. Evarts -
CFA study shows better gas mileage standards offset cost of modern safety tech
Cars that get good gas mileage aren't unsafe. In fact, gas savings have more than paid for safety improvements in modern cars, as well as for the technology needed to make the gains in fuel economy.
Eric C. Evarts -
Draft EPA memo freezes fuel economy standards at 42 mpg through 2026
Rather than continue to ratchet standards up to 54.5 mpg by 2025, as the current law requires, the new proposal would stall out fuel economy increases at just short of 42 mpg in 2020, and hold them there through 2026.
Eric C. Evarts -
Trump loses court battle to roll back automaker gas mileage fines
Automakers may complain about rising gas mileage standards, but as several have proved over the years, they don't always have to meet them. Another strategy, employed regularly over the years by a few automakers is to ignore the fuel economy standards and just pay the penalties for missing them...
Eric C. Evarts