Obama May Support Single National Standard for Vehicle Efficiency
While early indications appeared that the Obama Administration was going to grant California its waiver to independently regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, it now looks like they are considering a single national standard. On Sunday, Obama’s assistant for energy and climate, Carol Browner said “The hope across the administration is that we can have a unified national policy when it comes to cleaner vehicles.”
The impact of such a policy shift would depend entirely on how strict any national standard is crafted. Historically, car companies and anti-environmentalists have supported national emissions standards because Congressional legislation is invariably weaker and more watered down than legislation that comes out of liberal states like California. And if federal pre-emption is followed, states are locked out of creating their own standards.
While federal standards, in theory, could be just as strong, if not stronger than state laws, this is never the case. Current federal law aims to have a national average of 35 mpg by 2020, while California’s proposed rule would be 42 mpg. It seems unlikely, especially having seen the extreme partisanship with the stimulus package, that Obama would have the political capital and votes in Congress to buck this historic trend and push-through a meaningful national standard.
- Similar Posts:
- Proposed emissions bill could preempt state laws
- Obama Administration Likely to Grant California Emissions Waiver for Cars
- California sues federal government over environment (again).
Comments
Please contribute to the discussion by leaving a comment below. No need to agree with the post or other commenters, but please be constructive and respectful.
