Dozens of Democrats call for halt to fuel efficiency standards rollback

Dozens of Democratic lawmakers are calling on the Trump administration to halt a proposed rollback of vehicle mileage standards, warning that weakening the standards could have detrimental effects on fuel efficiency and Americans’ wallets and worsen climate change.

The lawmakers argued in a Feb. 4 letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy that the rollbacks would “increase costs for hardworking Americans, reduce vehicle efficiency, and increase our reliance on foreign oil imports.”

“Weakening the fuel economy standards and forcing Americans to purchase more expensive, gas-guzzling vehicles would exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis and serve as yet another betrayal of President Trump’s promise to lower energy costs for the American people,” Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Reps. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) and Sharice Davids (D-Kan.) wrote in the letter, which was signed by 78 Democrats in total.

The Trump administration has proposed changes to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, which set minimum average miles-per-gallon targets that automakers’ fleets must meet.

The standards, put in place by the Biden administration, require the country’s fleet to reach 50.4 mpg by model year 2031. The new Trump rule would reduce that goal to 34.5 mpg by the same year.   

“We’re officially terminating Joe Biden’s ridiculously burdensome — horrible, actually — CAFE standards that impose expensive restrictions and all sorts of problems,” President Trump said at a White House event in December.

Democrats argued the Transportation Department’s plan is a “clear violation” of maximum feasibility requirements because automakers were already exceeding the 34.5 mpg standard.

Maximum feasibility requirements are determined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on the basis of four factors: technological feasibility, economic practicability, other motor vehicle standards, and the country’s need to conserve energy.

Democrats also raised concerns about a provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was signed into law by Trump last summer, that eliminated penalties for automakers that don’t meet the standard, essentially gutting enforcement.

“The proposal would also dismantle key compliance mechanisms that have long provided automakers with flexibility and incentivized innovation, penalizing those who lead and rewarding those who lag,” the lawmakers wrote.

In addition to claiming that the Biden-era standards were expected to save Americans more than $84 billion in fuel costs, the lawmakers also asserted that they would have “dramatically” reduced greenhouse gas emissions and led to better health outcomes.

“This proposed rule is dangerous and will lead to more respiratory diseases and hospital visits at a time when health care prices are already skyrocketing – worsening the ongoing affordability crisis facing American households today,” they wrote, claiming the changes would result in more than 450 premature deaths and nearly 14,000 asthma exacerbations.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents the largest global automakers, including Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen, has demonstrated support for some of the Trump administration’s changes.

“We’ve been clear and consistent: The current CAFE rules finalized under the previous administration are extremely challenging for automakers to achieve given the current marketplace for [electric vehicles]. What’s good for consumers and the auto industry? A stable regulatory environment and balanced, reasonable, achievable standards that continue to reduce emissions and improve fuel economy,” the alliance’s President and CEO John Bozzella said in a December statement.