Legislative Background on Fuel Economy
How Congress is responding to the SAFE Vehicles Rule
Congress first created the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards in the 1975 Clean Air Act, instructing the Department of Transportation (DOT) to set the standards. Most recently, in 2007, Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act, which again required the administration to raise fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks to at least a combined average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020 and to the “maximum feasible levels” through 2030. The Obama administration promulgated those standards in 2012. …
