U.S., California to jointly seek higher car fuel economy
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2011/01/epa-california-fuel-efficiency-standards/1The U.S. government announced Monday that it will propose new fuel economy and greenhouse gas standards for 2017-2025 cars and light-duty trucks at the same time as California -- by Sept. 1, 2011.
Officials from the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency and California said they'll now work on the same timeline. Previously, California planned to announce the new standards in March and the federal agencies in the fall.
"We are sharing the same set of data" on the feasibility of hiking fuel economy, Stanley Young, a spokesman for the California Air Resources Board, a state agency, tells Green House. He says some scientific and engineering studies are not yet done, and "we wanted to be sure that data was available."
"By working together with EPA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to develop standards for the next generation of clean cars, we can set a standard that works for automakers across the country," DOT Secretary Ray LaHood said in the announcement.
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Last April, DOT and EPA set new standards for model year 2012-2016 cars and light-duty trucks, requiring an estimated average of 35.5 miles per gallon in model year 2016. California accepted these standards as meeting its own ones adopted in 2004. Officials say improving fuel efficiency will save consumers money at the pump, reduce America's dependence on foreign oil and cut emissions of harmful pollutants.
