Today, EPA chief Lisa Jackson delivered what she says is a final draft of the 2016 fuel economy rules to the Obama administration. The EPA will target a 35.5 fuel economy standard for vehicles by 2016. This will be Obama’s first move to regulate greenhouse gas emissions through the EPA. Barring any surprises, President Obama will likely approve of the new regulations. The administration is expected to make the rules public next month.
The proposal gives a detailed plan for how automakers can meet this deadline, starting in 2012.
“I feel very optimistic that we will come out with a rulemaking package that will demonstrate to the American people that they can trust that the government is making one set of regulations so that we don’t have this patchwork,” she said to reporters.
In addition, Freep reported,
Jackson said the EPA had worked closely with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to craft the proposal; NHTSA traditionally sets mileage standards, but had clashed with EPA officials in recent years as EPA demanded tougher rules to limit greenhouse gases.
With Senate Democrats planning to push nationwide rules on global warming later next month, and opposition rising from business groups, Jackson said the EPA was bracing for the debate to grow more intense, saying the latest scientific consensus argued for action.
“We don’t have as much time as we thought we had, and it’s worse than we thought it was,” Jackson said.
Lisa Jackson and other EPA administrators are currently under fire as some in the agency feel opposing viewpoints and opinions are being silenced. In this video, EPA economist Alan Carlin speaks out against some agency findings. He claims the administration ignored his doubts on the agency’s plan to regulate greenhouse gases.
Watch:
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