Policy Release: Major U.S. businesses oppose roll back of MPG standards

Rolling back national mileage and pollution standards for passenger vehicles risks weakening the economy, stifling innovation and making U.S. automakers less competitive

Washington DC ; A national network of influential American businesses is calling on the Trump administration to halt its proposed rollback of fuel economy and emissions standards for passenger vehicles and to uphold the rights of states to maintain their authority to address their own unique air quality and emissions problems.

This rollback is being considered in the wake of a new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which underscored that avoiding the worst effects of climate change will require dramatically reducing the pace and scale of greenhouse gas emission reductions, especially from the transportation sector.

"We see the economic advantage and environmental imperative to reduce climate pollution at the fastest pace and on the greatest scale possible,�?? said Mark Bescher, manager of federal government and external affairs at Unilever. “To achieve real and significant reductions in emissions, we need to keep the existing vehicle standards in place. Rolling back these achievable, common sense standards could significantly slow American innovation and increase business costs.�??

The Ceres BICEP Network (https://www.ceres.org/networks/ceres-policy-network) — comprised of more than 50 of America's most influential companies including Adobe, General Mills, Nike, Mars and others, and representing $400 billion in annual revenue — submitted a letter (https://www.ceres.org/sites/default/files/Fact%20Sheets%20or%20misc%20files/Policy%20Letter/BICEP%20Letter%20-%20SAFE%20Comment.pdf) to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in response to a proposed rule that would weaken national vehicle mileage and pollution standards.

“The standards represent a critical opportunity to strengthen the U.S. economy and create jobs,�?? the letter states. “Both by benefiting the auto industry and by ensuring fuel cost savings, which in turn will increase spending on non-energy goods and services, which employ more people per dollar of output than the oil and gas sectors.�??

The Ceres BICEP Network also opposes any attempts to undermine the rights of California and other states under the federal Clean Air Act to protect their residents from tailpipe pollution.

"Thirteen states, representing 35 percent of the U.S. market for cars and trucks, have asserted their right to adopt strong vehicle emissions standards," said Anne Kelly, senior director of policy and the BICEP Network at Ceres. "This kind of state leadership promotes innovation that spurs new investment and jobs. States must be allowed to take advantage of this economic, health and environmental opportunity."

Businesses agree that keeping the current standards will strengthen the U.S. economy, save businesses and consumers money, enhance the global competitiveness of the U.S. auto industry, provide the regulatory certainty needed to spur innovation, reduce dependence on oil and climate risk, and create jobs.

“Some of the largest companies in the United States are making it clear that the rollback is bad for the U.S. economy and, ultimately, their bottom lines,�?? said Nigel Topping, CEO of the We Mean Business coalition (http://wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/) . “The proposed plans are not what businesses need. To be competitive, American businesses need clear, ambitious policies that drive innovation and investment in the zero-carbon fleet of the future.�??

An economic analysis (https://www.ceres.org/resources/reports/economic-implications-current-national-program-v-weakened-national-program-2022) by Ceres found that the current federal standards would enhance the global competitiveness of the industry, reduce risk for the Detroit Three and benefit suppliers. In contrast, weakening the standards could undermine industry economic performance, particularly for suppliers, the largest U.S, manufacturing sector, who have relied on the national targets to make major investments in advanced automotive technologies that cut emissions and improve gas mileage.  

The public comment period to respond to the proposed rule closes on Fri., Oct. 26.