The Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency Thursday announced that there will be “one, and only one” national fuel standard, a move made to cut the costs of vehicles and bar California from making stricter standards.
In a release and in a briefing today, the department said, “This action will help ensure that there will be one, and only one, set of national fuel economy and greenhouse gas emission standards for vehicles.”
The department, in the release shared in advance with Secrets, also took a shot at California which will lose its waiver to require different fuel standards, a model followed by a dozen other states.
The Trump Administration is revoking California’s Federal Waiver on emissions in order to produce far less expensive cars for the consumer, while at the same time making the cars substantially SAFER. This will lead to more production because of this pricing and safety……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 18, 2019
“Moving forward, California must continue to enforce its programs to address smog and other forms of traditional air pollution caused by motor vehicles. The state must redouble its efforts to address the worst air quality in the United States and finally achieve compliance with EPA’s National Ambient Air Quality Standards, where for decades it has failed to address serious, severe, and extreme non-compliance status in several areas within the state,” it said.
….far safer and much less expensive. Many more cars will be produced under the new and uniform standard, meaning significantly more JOBS, JOBS, JOBS! Automakers should seize this opportunity because without this alternative to California, you will be out of business.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 18, 2019
Trump on Wednesday tweeted his plans to shake up the fuel standard rules as part of the proposed Safer, Affordable, Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule.
In reaction, California officials promised legal action and said that their rules are tougher and prevent greater pollution than federal standards.
Today’s actions represent another act in Donald Trump’s political theater. A failed attempt to assert power. A continuation of a political vendetta against CA and our progress.
Bad news for him — we will prevail. See you in court. https://t.co/mDRsk6QRw2
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 18, 2019
“You can’t get serious about climate change unless you are serious about vehicle emissions,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom. “This is such a pivotal moment in the history of the climate change debate,” he added.
The battle between Washington and California is likely to help shape the climate change fight on the 2020 campaign trail. Some polls show that it is a key issue in the eyes of voters.
Automakers have said that they prefer moving to increased mileage requirements because it will keep their vehicles competitive with others worldwide. However, they don’t want the standards to be as high as the Obama administration had set.
Still, this year Honda, Ford, BMW, and Volkswagen signed on to the California standards, creating an industry split.
In the release, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said the federal government, not a state, has the authority to set national standards.
“Today’s action meets President Trump’s commitment to establish uniform fuel economy standards for vehicles across the United States, ensuring that no State has the authority to opt out of the nation’s rules, and no State has the right to impose its policies on the rest of the country,” she said.
She also made a statement shown on the DOT twitter site.
Environmental Protection Agency chief Andrew Wheeler added, “One national standard provides much-needed regulatory certainty for the automotive industry and sets the stage for the Trump Administration’s final SAFE rule that will save lives and promote economic growth by reducing the price of new vehicles to help more Americans purchase newer, cleaner, and safer cars and trucks.”
