Senators talk tough on fuel standards

[Mass]

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070307/BUSINESS01/703070346/1014

Senators talk tough on fuel standards
Committee says Bush, Detroit are too slow to act

March 7, 2007

BY JUSTIN HYDE

FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF

WASHINGTON -- Under sharp questioning from U.S. senators, the Bush administration official in charge of overseeing fuel economy standards said the administration might be able to work with targets set by Congress, which automakers strongly oppose.

Several Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee warned Tuesday that they had run out of patience waiting for tougher U.S. fuel economy standards on cars and trucks and were ready to act to reduce global-warming emissions and keep the United States from falling behind other nations.
...

In January, Bush called for a 4% annual increase in fuel economy standards through 2017, resulting in an average of about 34 miles per gallon. Nicole Nason, the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, told senators NHTSA would try to meet the president's goal but needed to do extensive research to ensure it was feasible.

...

Nason told Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., that she couldn't predict what percentage increase NHTSA would eventually set, to which Kerry replied that without a set target, "this is meaningless, this is just a game."

"If the president sets it as a goal, you do everything you can to meet it," Nason replied.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., told Nason "for those who want to do nothing about fuel economy, you're the perfect spokesman," and pressed her to say whether Bush would veto a specific fuel economy increase mandated by Congress.

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Several members of the committee are cosponsors of a bill that would increase the fuel economy standards for all vehicles to an average of 35 m.p.g. by 2019. That bill would also require all new cars and trucks to have real-time fuel economy displays on their dashboards and create special labels for vehicles that surpass the fuel economy standards.

Boxer and other senators noted that fuel economy standards in other countries, including Japan, China and the European Union, had outpaced U.S. standards. Neither the senators nor the witnesses at the hearing mentioned any differences among the various markets.

S.357
Title: A bill to improve passenger automobile fuel economy and safety, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce dependence on foreign oil, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Feinstein, Dianne (introduced 1/22/2007) Cosponsors (16)
Latest Major Action: 1/22/2007 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. COSPONSORS(16), ALPHABETICAL : (Sort: by date)


Sen Akaka, Daniel K. - 2/7/2007
Sen Boxer, Barbara - 1/22/2007
Sen Cantwell, Maria - 1/22/2007
Sen Collins, Susan M. - 1/22/2007
Sen Dodd, Christopher J. - 1/30/2007
Sen Durbin, Richard - 1/22/2007
Sen Inouye, Daniel K. - 1/22/2007
Sen Kerry, John F. - 1/22/2007
Sen Lautenberg, Frank R. - 1/22/2007
Sen Leahy, Patrick J. - 1/24/2007
Sen Lieberman, Joseph I. - 1/22/2007
Sen Menendez, Robert - 1/22/2007
Sen Nelson, Bill - 1/22/2007
Sen Reed, Jack - 1/24/2007
Sen Sanders, Bernard - 1/26/2007