As we previewed yesterday, President Barack Obama has proposed a new, nationwide fuel economy standard for the United States that would rise to 35.5 mpg between 2012 and 2016. The plan would also force the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate tailpipe emissions, as is common in Europe.
The proposed regulation is receiving applause from all major automakers, who say that not allowing the states to make their own regulations will save the automakers from having to create unique models and powertrains for small markets.
“GM and the auto industry benefit by having more consistency and certainty to guide our product plans,” GM CEO Fritz Henderson said in a statement released to the media before the announcement.
The Obama plan requires a 5 percent increase in fuel efficiency every year from 2012 to 2016. It sets one, simple standard for automakers, rather than having the EPA, the Transportation Department and the California Emissions standards each controlling the way cars are created. Like the Bush administration, the Obama administration has firmly denied California from imposing its own regulations that would go above and beyond the federal standards.
The plan is said to save about 1.8 billion barrels of oil from 2012 to 2016.
