Senators Snowe, Feinstein Applaud Proposed CAFE Standards for Medium and Heavy Duty Trucks

Press Release

U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said proposed regulations for medium and heavy duty trucks for model years 2014-2018 announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), which would reduce fuel consumption and emissions by 10 to 20 percent depending on vehicle size, was a positive step towards making substantive changes in reducing our consumption of foreign oil.

Senators Snowe and Feinstein, who introduced the "Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act" in 2007 to raise fleet wide fuel economy standards for all cars, trucks and SUVs applauded the announcement.

"At a time when Americans continue to pay too much at the pump, this rule demonstrates that existing technology can be used to reduce both our dependency on foreign oil and gasoline and diesel costs," Senator Snowe said. "Whether it is through efficient tires, motors, or transmission systems, these technologies will save truckers an estimated $35 billion over the lifetime of the program. This proposed rule builds on the passenger and medium-duty rules and recognizes that it's been an entire generation since we've made substantive changes in the CAFE standards. In that time, we've gone from land-lines to cell phones, from record players to Ipods, from big mainframe computers to minuscule handhelds, and from encyclopedias to the Internet."

"The proposal announced by the Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency regarding fuel efficiency standards for medium duty and heavy duty trucks for model years 2014-2018 is ahead of schedule and very welcome," said Senator Feinstein. "The framework for these new regulations was the Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act, which I authored with Senator Snowe. These new efficiency savings will save truck operators an estimated $41 billion, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 250 metric tons and save 500 million barrels of oil. Indeed, this is very good news."

The legislation that Senators Snowe and Feinstein passed in 2007 required a National Academy of Sciences report on the opportunities for oil reductions for medium and heavy-duty vehicles. The report issued in March served as critical analysis for the development of the proposed rule. The rules would cover big-rig tractor-trailers, transit and school buses, and work trucks. The rule is expected to save 500 million barrels of oil and save $35 billion for truckers in fuel costs over the life of the program.

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