WASHINGTON, DC—The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), under the Trump administration, announced this week a final rule aimed at “Resetting the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Program,” asserting that the Biden administration improperly used the standards to mandate electric vehicles.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy stated that the move is intended to make vehicles more affordable and easier to manufacture in the United States.
“The previous administration illegally used CAFE standards as an electric vehicle mandate — raising new car prices and reducing safety,” Duffy said in a statement. “Resetting CAFE standards as Congress intended will lower vehicle costs and ensure the American people can purchase the cars they want.”
Maryland’s plan to ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035 is now in doubt. Maryland is among more than a dozen states that adopted California’s rules under a framework that allows other states to copy the Golden State, which has enjoyed the unique ability to set its own clean air standards through Clean Air Act waivers, according to the Baltimore Sun.
The new rule identifies factors that are statutorily prohibited from consideration when setting maximum feasible fuel economy standards under existing energy acts. It also outlines NHTSA’s authority to bring the CAFE program into compliance with relevant legal requirements, aligning with the president’s “Unleashing American Energy” Executive Order and the secretary’s “Fixing the CAFE Program” Memorandum.
Additionally, the rule clarifies NHTSA’s interpretation of its authority regarding a fuel efficiency improvement program for commercial medium- and heavy-duty on-highway vehicles and work trucks. This is intended to establish the legal basis for bringing that program into compliance with the law.
NHTSA clarified that this final rule itself does not alter existing CAFE or medium- and heavy-duty standards. However, it will guide the agency’s enforcement authority for all existing standards during the rulemaking process for future replacement standards.
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