The Hip new CAFE

Boehlert-Markey Bill to Increase CAFE Standards

Action

H.R. 3762, “a bill to require higher standards of automobile fuel efficiency in order to reduce the amount of oil used by automobiles in the United States by 10 percent beginning in 2016” was introduced in the House on September 14, 2005.

o Sponsors: Representatives Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) and Edward Markey (D-MA), along with 48 other cosponsors.

o Referred to: House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality.

Summary of the Bill

Current corporate average fuel economy standards (CAFE) require an average mpg of 27.5 for passenger automobiles, and 21.0 mpg for light trucks (which includes SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks). CAFE standards have changed little since 1985.

The Boehlert-Markey bill is very similar to the Boehlert-Markey amendment to H.R. 6, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, that was offered on the House floor in April. That amendment failed by a vote of 254-177. The bill would require automobile manufacturers to ensure that the corporate average fuel economy of their fleets is no less than 33 miles per gallon (mpg) for model years 2016 and after.

The bill would require the Secretary of Transportation to issue fuel economy standards for automobiles (including cars and light trucks) starting with the 2009 model year. By 2016 the standards would have to ensure average fuel economy in new vehicles of at least 33 mpg. The National Research Council in 2001 found that existing cost-effective technologies (not including hybrid gas-electric engines) could achieve such savings, and also recommended other CAFE reforms allowed in the bill.

The regulations are to ensure that the improvements to fuel economy standards do not degrade automobile safety, and that they maximize the retention of automobile manufacturing jobs in the United States .

Under H.R. 3762, different CAFE standards could be applied to different automobile sizes. The Administration recently proposed new CAFE standards for light trucks based on six size categories in order to reduce the impact of the CAFE program on American automakers, which tend to make larger, less fuel-efficient trucks and SUVs, and to discourage automakers from meeting CAFE using small, and possibly less safe, vehicles. The bill makes it clear that the administration can regulate cars and trucks by size.

The bill also would authorize, but not require, a CAFE credit trading program allowing manufacturers that exceed their mpg requirements to sell credits to other manufacturers. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that trading would reduce the cost to the economy of implementing CAFE by 16 percent. Creating a trading program was recommended by the bipartisan National Commission on Energy Policy.

Next steps

Amendments on CAFE are likely to be introduced in consideration of new energy legislation in the response to the recent price spikes in the wake of the hurricanes.

The Alliance to Save Energy supports this bill and has sent out an action alert to its 42,000 energy activists, asking them to contact their Representatives and encourage them to support H.R. 3762.

For the text of H.R. 3762, please see the website http://thomas.loc.gov/, or for more information contact the Alliance policy team at (202) 857-0666 or policyinfo@ase.org.

Originally published in the October 2005 edition of e-FFICIENCY News