U.S. EPA and U.S. DOT Announce Upcoming Joint Rulemaking to Establish Federal Vehicle Standards

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), on behalf of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), have issued a Notice of Upcoming Joint Rulemaking to establish federal vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and fuel economy standards. This action follows President Obama’s announcement of a national policy to reduce GHG emissions and increase fuel economy for new passenger cars, light-duty-trucks, and medium-duty passenger vehicles sold in the U.S. As EPA is responsible for regulating air pollution under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and NHTSA is responsible for regulating Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, the two agencies will work in coordination to propose standards for GHG emissions and fuel economy, respectively. The standards will apply to Model Years 2012 through 2016 and will take into account the expected cost and commercial availability of new technologies. For more information see the Notice of Upcoming Joint Rulemaking and the White House press release.