Larisa Manescu, larisa.manescu@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, DC- Days before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, the National Highway and Safety Administration (NHTSA) will issue an interim final rule on Thursday to delay stiffer penalties for new cars and trucks that violate minimum fuel-economy standards. Under the Obama Administration, NHTSA had adjusted the fines for inflation–from $5.50 to $14.00—for the first time in nearly two decades, making the increase applicable to model year 2019 vehicles.
This rule would delay that effective date by another three years to 2022. This rule comes on the heels of a EPA Automotive Trends report released last week that shows that the average fuel efficiency of cars and light trucks sold in the U.S. dropped and pollution increased for the first time in five years in 2019.
NHTSA imposes fines for each one-tenth of a mile by which vehicles fall below fuel economy standards. Automakers decide whether to install fuel- and pollution-saving technology or instead pay penalties based in part on the amount of the fine.
“This is the fourth time in four years that the Trump Administration is flouting the directive of Congress and the courts to protect communities and our climate by making automakers pay for their excess pollution,” said Katherine Garcia, Deputy Director of National Policies for Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All campaign. “Cheap fines incentivize automakers to produce gas guzzlers that fuel climate change and foul our air with harmful pollutants. Delaying proper fines exacerbates the climate crisis and harms the people most vulnerable to toxic tailpipe emissions, including children and the elderly.”
“Disobeying Congressional mandates and two court orders has become par for the course under the Trump Administration,” said Joanne Spalding, Chief Climate Counsel for the Sierra Club. “The Sierra Club and its allies will go to court yet again to enforce fundamental protections against dirty and dangerous pollution from fossil fuel powered vehicles.”
Background:
NHTSA’s delay rule follows two decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in 2018 and 2020 holding that the Trump Administration’s 2017 rollback to a rate of $5.50 was unlawful.
The court has now twice reinstated the $14 rate and ordered it to begin with model year 2019 vehicles.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.