Matthew Yi, San Francisco Chronicle
President Obama today will announce a national standard for tailpipe emissions patterned after California's pending rule requiring automakers to build more fuel-sipping vehicles and make drastic cuts in greenhouse gases, a senior administration official said Monday.
The federal standard would be less stringent than California's regulation, which awaits a waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but it could have a larger impact in fighting global warming by involving all 50 states, the official said.
Obama's plan is a compromise that includes the support of automakers who have fought California's request for a waiver, arguing for a nationwide fuel-efficiency standard rather than what they've billed as a patchwork of state rules.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is scheduled to be with Obama today when he makes the announcement, applauded the president.
"California's relentless push for greenhouse gas reductions from automobiles is paying off not just for our state," he said, "but for all Americans, for our environment, for automakers and our economy."
The federal standard, expected to face a months-long federal rule-making process, would require automakers to increase fuel efficiency beginning with the 2012 model year. Automakers' fleets would have to average 39 mpg and light trucks and SUVs would be required to reach 30 mpg by 2016 - four years faster than federal law now requires.
Current federal standards require 27.5 mpg for cars and 22.3 mpg for SUVs and light trucks.
The regulation would reduce nationwide oil consumption by 1.8 billion barrels while cutting carbon dioxide emissions by the equivalent of taking 177 million cars off the road or closing about 190 coal-fired power plants, the White House official said on condition of anonymity.
"What this means is that there's going to be more choices on cleaner vehicles (for consumers)," the official said.
Automakers are expected to support the president's plan.
"For seven long years, there has been a debate over whether states or the federal government should regulate autos," said Dave McCurdy, president and CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. "President Obama's announcement ends that old debate by starting federal rule-making to set a national program."
For California, with its landmark legislation signed by Schwarzenegger in 2006, the move is a huge step toward reaching its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2020.
The federal standard would be less stringent than California's regulation, which awaits a waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but it could have a larger impact in fighting global warming by involving all 50 states, the official said.
Obama's plan is a compromise that includes the support of automakers who have fought California's request for a waiver, arguing for a nationwide fuel-efficiency standard rather than what they've billed as a patchwork of state rules.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is scheduled to be with Obama today when he makes the announcement, applauded the president.
"California's relentless push for greenhouse gas reductions from automobiles is paying off not just for our state," he said, "but for all Americans, for our environment, for automakers and our economy."
The federal standard, expected to face a months-long federal rule-making process, would require automakers to increase fuel efficiency beginning with the 2012 model year. Automakers' fleets would have to average 39 mpg and light trucks and SUVs would be required to reach 30 mpg by 2016 - four years faster than federal law now requires.
Current federal standards require 27.5 mpg for cars and 22.3 mpg for SUVs and light trucks.
The regulation would reduce nationwide oil consumption by 1.8 billion barrels while cutting carbon dioxide emissions by the equivalent of taking 177 million cars off the road or closing about 190 coal-fired power plants, the White House official said on condition of anonymity.
"What this means is that there's going to be more choices on cleaner vehicles (for consumers)," the official said.
Automakers are expected to support the president's plan.
"For seven long years, there has been a debate over whether states or the federal government should regulate autos," said Dave McCurdy, president and CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. "President Obama's announcement ends that old debate by starting federal rule-making to set a national program."
For California, with its landmark legislation signed by Schwarzenegger in 2006, the move is a huge step toward reaching its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2020.
This is bullshit. 39 MPG for cars, and 30 MPG for trucks is insane. Why can't the government understand that we should be given a choice in what we want to buy. Not all of us want wheezy as ******** boring cars. This is really looking like the final Golden Age for cars and trucks.
The worst part, is none of this is going to help. The meat industry is already farting out more greenhouse gas than all the automobiles in the nation put together. And every time we could make a dent in the greenhouse battle, ******** China fires up another coal power plant that undoes any impact and adds even more. China truly is the scourge of all things decent.
