Regulators reject request to extend comment period on CAFE
Environmental and safety regulators have rejected a request by automakers and NADA to extend the comment period on a report on fuel efficiency requirements by at least two months. The report, issued in July by the Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, projected that automakers would likely fall short of the goal of 54.5 mpg by MY 2025, instead averaging 50 to 52.6 mpg by then.
Automakers had said that with the low price of gas and the increasing consumer preference for trucks and SUVs, they would need more time to assess whether they could still meet the stringent goal, or should ask for it to be lowered. The request for a delay was filed by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and was joined by NADA, the Association of Global Automakers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other groups.
Regulators from EPA and the California Air Resources Board said at the SAE meeting held in conjunction with The Washington Auto Show that automakers have done an excellent job so far in meeting CAFE standards and that the technology is available for them to continue to do so. Automakers and NADA object that the standards are based on consumer purchases, a harder goal to meet than the contents of the fleet.
Comments must now be filed by late September. NADA has said it plans to file comments. The final decision on the standards will be made in 2018 by the next administration.
Download Bulletin PDF