Bush Asks Congress For Improved CAFE Standards

But Does Congress Need To Act?

President Bush has called on Congress to allow the Executive Branch to increase automobile fuel-economy standards. Currently, the standard is 27.5 mpg for passenger cars, a level set 20 years ago.

However, the Department of Transportation web site suggests Congressional action is unnecessary (emphasis added):

In a letter dated July 10, 2001, Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta asked the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to lift the restriction prohibiting agency expenditures for the purposes of considering CAFE standards. The Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for FY 2002 (P.L.107-87), which was enacted on December 18, 2001, contained no provision restricting the Secretary’s authority to prescribe fuel economy standards...

In February 2002, NHTSA issued a request for comments (RFC) seeking information, views and data regarding future fuel economy standards and potential changes to the CAFE program... The RFC sought to elicit comments on possible reforms to the CAFE program, as it applies to both passenger cars and light trucks, with an eye toward protecting passenger safety, advancing fuel-efficient technologies, and obtaining the benefits of market-based approaches.

That was four years ago.

DOT recently issued a final regulation requiring an incremental increase in the fuel effiency of light trucks. There has been no action on cars.

CAFE History
In 1975, during the first oil crisis, Congress set a goal to double fuel economy in passenger cars and light trucks by 1985, using corporate average fuel efficiency (CAFE) as the measure. It set a standard for cars but left truck goals to the Department of Transportation.

That 31 year old bill delegated authority for setting standards to the Department of Transportation. However, in 1992, omnibus energy legislation originating in the Democratically controlled Senate "would have extended discretion to the Department of Transportation to set 'maximum feasible' targets" for Model Years 1996 - 2002... The inclusion of CAFE provisions was cited as one of the reasons for failure of a cloture motion on the legislation in early November 1991." The Energy Policy Act of 1992 (PL 102-486) contained no CAFE provisions.

Freeze Details
Congress froze the standards from 1995-2001. Republicans have controlled both Houses of Congress since 1995, with the exception of the Senate in 2001-2002.

In 1994, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed investigating the CAFE standard for light trucks. Congress prohibited using appropriations for any CAFE rulemaking in DOT Authorizations for fiscal 1996 through fiscal 2001 (PL 104-50, PL 104-205, PL 105-66, PL 106-69, and PL 106-346).

Section 330 of the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for FY 1996 (PL 104-50) reads:

None of the funds in this Act shall be available to prepare, propose, or promulgate any regulations . . . prescribing corporate average fuel economy standards for automobiles . . . in any model year that differs from standards promulgated for such automobiles prior to enactment of this section.

Thus, Congress froze the regs.

However, in 2001, Congress directed the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to evaluate the effectiveness and impacts of CAFE standards (House Report No. 106-940).

The final report was released in January 2002. The report concludes that technologies exist that could significantly increase passenger car and light truck fuel economy within 15 years, while maintaining vehicle size, weight, utility, and performance.

Standards Have Peaked
Fuel efficiency standards for the combined light truck-passenger car market peaked in 1986–87 at 25.9 mpg. The standard for cars, almost 20 years old, is 27.5 mpg.

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