U.S. House to Probe How 54.5 MPG Auto Rule Was Written

Washington DC September 30, 2011; Angela Greiling Keane writing for Bloomberg reported that a U.S. rule that would require automakers to double fuel economy of cars and light trucks by 2025 was written “in secret, outside the scope of law,” Representative Darrell Issa said in a letter announcing a congressional investigation.

Issa, a California Republican who is chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said today in a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that the rule was rushed and may jeopardize safety by forcing automakers to make lighter-weight vehicles.

“I am concerned about the negative impact these standards could have on the safety of automobiles, the possibility that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration acted outside the scope of congressionally delegated authority and the lack of transparency in the process leading up to the agreement,” Issa said in the letter. The agency oversees both fuel economy and safety regulation.

Issa’s panel today announced investigations into the auto regulator and the Environmental Protection Agency, which wrote the rule along with NHTSA.

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