FEINSTEIN, SCHUMER PROPOSE USING STIMULUS FUNDS REJECTED BY GOVERNORS TO JUMPSTART "CASH FOR CLUNKERS" PLAN
U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) today issued a joint statement in response to President Obama's expressed support for fleet modernization legislation - more commonly known as "Cash for Clunkers."
The bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by both Senators along with Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), would allow American consumers to trade in their gas guzzling vehicles in return for a voucher of up to $4500 that would go toward the purchase of a more fuel efficient vehicle or to pay for public transportation.
Following is the joint statement from Senators Feinstein and Schumer:
"The American auto industry is in serious jeopardy. Now is not the time to point fingers or ask how we got here. The question is what Congress can do to help jumpstart these companies, save jobs and create a more fuel efficient fleet for the 21st century."
One of the most important things we can do is create an incentive for people to buy new and more efficient vehicles. We have proposed legislation with Senator Collins which would do just that.
The President expressed his support for this kind of legislation this week, and now it's a matter of finding the funding to pay for these incentives. We believe that there are several possible options, including the stimulus funds that have been turned down for any reason. These would include funds that have been rejected by the governors of several states and money set aside for stimulus projects that are not ready to go.
Alternative proposals would penalize car dealers who sell the most efficient cars and trucks, some of which happen to be assembled abroad. But we do not believe this is the way to go. It's clear that this kind of provision would violate both NAFTA and WTO agreements.
For instance, Toyota Corollas are assembled in California, Canada, and Japan. The Honda CRV is assembled in both Ohio and Japan. American consumers would receive a different voucher amount for each of these identical cars, depending on where it was built. That doesn't make sense.
We are willing to explore any ideas that would bring interested parties to the table."