Automakers alliance urges Trump to adjust fuel efficiency rules
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers sent a letter to President-elect Trump urging him to adjust the stringent fuel efficiency goal of 54.5 mpg across the fleet by 2025. That goal was set in 2012, and automakers have said for several months that it should be revised to reflect the current market reality.
With gas prices at record lows, sales of fuel-hungry SUVs and trucks have soared. Automakers have said they cannot meet the 2025 goal without dramatically increasing their sales of alternative fuel vehicles, which are languishing on dealer lots. But a July 2016 midterm review of the fuel efficiency rules by the Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration concluded that automakers are on track to meet the goal, and made no changes to the rules. NADA and the Auto Alliance asked for revision of the rules at a hearing this fall.
As if to back up the Allianceês point, the average fuel economy of new vehicles sold in the U.S. in October dropped by 0.4 mpg to 24.8 mpg in October, according to researchers at the University of Michigan. Thatês the biggest drop since July 2013.
The Auto Alliance in its letter also asked Trump to set up a presidential advisory committee to coordinate all regulations that affect the auto industry. Such requests are likely to meet a much more receptive audience in a Trump administration. Indeed, a senior policy advisor to Trump said the Trump administration will conduct a review of all federal regulations, including the fuel efficiency rules, to ensure that they are not harming consumers, reported the Wall Street Journal.
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