Amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, the Trump administration has undone fuel efficiency rules that the Obama administration imposed on vehicle manufacturers. In the long run, this rule change, which lowers the demanded level of fuel efficiency, could end up costing consumers significantly more than they’d have had to pay in gas otherwise, because they’ll have to refill their tanks more often. The Trump administration justified the rule change by insisting that lower standards would make more modern, safer cars more accessible to the average consumer because their cost could be cheaper — but even the increased emissions from the lowered efficiency could help drive apparently nearly 1,000 additional deaths a year because of increased air pollution.
The Trump administration’s rule change shifts the miles-per-gallon (mpg) demand down from an average of 55 mpg by 2025 to just about 40 mpg by 2026. They also lower the required yearly improvements in mileage from the Obama administration’s 5 percent to just 1.5 percent.
Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao insisted:
‘This rule reflects the Department’s No. 1 priority — safety — by making newer, safer, cleaner vehicles more accessible for Americans who are, on average, driving 12-year-old cars. By making newer, safer, and cleaner vehicles more accessible for American families, more lives will be saved and more jobs will be created.’
But again, the relaxed fuel efficiency demands could spark their own set of problems, which the administration seems to completely ignore. According to Consumer Reports, with those lower standards in place, average overall consumer spending on gas is expected to spike by some $300 billion over the lifetime of their gas guzzling vehicles.
David Friedman, vice president for advocacy with Consumer Reports, called the administration’s move amidst the historic economic upheaval wrought by attempts to stem the spread of the Coronavirus “stunning.” He commented:
‘Unemployment claims skyrocketed to more than 3 million last week, so millions of Americans are now going without a paycheck, and our nation is at risk of a recession because of the COVID crisis. So it’s absolutely stunning the administration would finalize a plan that will cost drivers more money at the pump for years to come. Consumers, workers, small business owners are the engine of America’s economy. And the last thing they need is to get stuck spending more on gas.’
But the administration’s priority seems to be easing the way for car manufacturers — even though they themselves have said that they can achieve greater fuel efficiency improvements than what the big business-oriented Trump administration’s new rules call for.
Friedman noted that the administration’s new rule actually seems quite vulnerable to legal challenges, because the legal demand is for car emissions rules to drive vehicle manufacturers to improve significantly, and that demand remains completely unmet if the administration asks manufacturers to do less than they’ve admitted that they can.
The Trump administration has concurrently attempted to revoke the ability for individual states, like California, to set their own standards for vehicle emissions that are tougher than the national demands. Even still, the state recently struck its own deal with four automakers who agreed to still abide by close to the original, tougher Obama-era regulations, hitting an average of 50 mpg by 2026.
