Obama Announces New Fuel Standards for Cars and Trucks

May 19 - Today President Obama announced his national fuel-efficiency policy, which will require an average fuel economy standard of 35.5 mpg for new passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks by 2016, saving 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the lifetime of the program, according to the White House. In addition, tighter standards for tailpipe emissions will cut greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 30 percent, leading to a projected reduction of almost 900 million metric tons by 2016, the White House says. The proposed policy is aimed at promoting energy independence from foreign oil and reducing carbon dioxide that contributes to global climate change.

The 2002 National Research Council report Effectiveness and Impact of Corporate Average Fuel Economy recommended that the federal fuel economy standards be retooled to cut the nation's petroleum dependence and provide more flexibility to carmakers. Such improvements included adopting tradable fuel economy credits, eliminating the "two-fleet" rule that currently sets standards separately for domestic fleets and imports, and pursuing government-industry research and development.

Obama's new plan also provides one national policy for all automakers, instead of separate standards for the U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the state of California, whose standard applied to 13 other states. The 2006 National Research Council report State and Federal Standards for Mobile-Source Emissions assessed the scientific and technical procedures used by states to develop or adopt different emissions standards and compared those policies and practices with those used by EPA. The report stated that the basis for California's tougher emissions standards for cars and trucks was scientifically valid, and that the state's pioneering role spurred the development of better emission-control technologies of benefit to the entire nation. The report also said that despite the substantial progress in reducing emissions from cars and light- and heavy-duty trucks, more needs to be done to attain federal air-quality standards in many parts of the country.