Today, Congressman Jim Baird (IN-04) released the following statement after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) unveiled its "Freedom Means Affordable Cars" proposal to reset the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards.
“The Biden Administration manipulated fuel economy standards to impose a de facto electric vehicle mandate,” said Congressman Baird. “These Biden-era CAFE standards were a financial disaster for our great American automakers and consumers, skewing the market in favor of electric vehicles that Americans simply did not want. I am pleased to see President Trump and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy continue their historic deregulation efforts by reversing these overburdensome, unrealistic regulations. The NHTSA’s proposal is a great victory for automakers and consumer choice and will make vehicle ownership more affordable for every American.”
Background:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) oversees the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards program, which regulates how far a vehicle must travel on a gallon of fuel. The NHTSA is required to set CAFE standards to a maximum feasible level.
The Biden Administration’s CAFE standards mandated a 2% increase in fuel efficiency for model years 2027-2031 for passenger cars, and a 2% increase per year for light trucks for model years 2029-2031 to bring the average light-duty vehicle fuel economy up to approximately 50.4 miles per gallon by model year 2031.
The Trump Administration’s “Freedom Means Affordable Cars” proposal resets CAFE standards for model years 2022-2031. NHTSA’s proposal increases the fuel economy standard by 0.5% per year for passenger cars from model years 2023 through 2026, followed by 0.35% in model year 2027, and 0.25% from model year 2029 to 2031. For light trucks, NHTSA is proposing an increase of 0.5% for model year 2023 through 2026, followed by 0.7% in model year 2027, and 0.25% from model year 2029 to 2031. This proposal would achieve a fleet average fuel economy of 34.5 miles per gallon by model year 2031, a far more realistic goal.
Freedom Means Affordable Cars is also projected to save the American people $109 billion over the next five years and save families $1,000 on the average cost of a new vehicle.
More information on the proposal can be found here.
###
Contact Us
Office Locations
Washington
2303 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515
