Cleaner cars produce cleaner air for all of us

The Trump Administration recently announced that they are considering a rollback of the US clean car standards that have created jobs, reduced harmful air pollution, and saved Americans millions of dollars at the gas pump. Slashing the tires on these standards would be a mistake.

Less than a year ago, the EPA finalized fuel efficiency standards after conducting a lengthy and thorough technical review. This review included thousands of hours of research and analysis, evidence gathering for more than a year, and an extensive comment period. The massive record of sound scientific research found that the stronger gas mileage standards recommended are reasonable, achievable, and affordable for both consumers and automakers. The standards apply to cars with model years 2017-2025, and require that by the end of 2025, there will be nearly a doubling of fuel efficiency to 54.5 miles per gallon.

Nothing in the last 10 months has happened to change this. Re-opening the review of the standards, especially for an administration that wants to rein in spending, is an inconceivable waste of time and taxpayer money. The administration should be focused on keeping money in the pockets of American families. Sadly this is just another example of this administration turning its back on the promises it made in favor of scratching the back of corporations.

Thanks to vehicle efficiency standards, cars and trucks run on less fuel and Americans save at the gas pump. In fact, consumers would save between $3,200 and $5,700 over the life of a new car with the current standards. Lower-to- middle income households spend up to 10 percent of their income on gasoline. When the price of gas increases the cost to families multiplies exponentially.

Increased fuel efficiency standards also create jobs. More than 1,200 U.S. factories in 48 states employ 288,000 American workers who are building technologies that reduce pollution from cars and trucks and help meet national fuel efficiency standards. There are nine states with 10,000 or more workers building clean, fuel-efficient vehicle technology. For the top five states—of which Ohio is one—building cleaner vehicle technologies support nearly 160,000 manufacturing jobs.

The vast majority of Americans agree that automakers should continue to improve fuel efficiency for both economic reasons and health reasons. Clean cars standards have helped cut carbon pollution from cars and trucks, cleaning up our air and helping combat climate change. Rolling back strong standards would be a huge step backward for all of us.

Sadly, President Trump has shown an alarming willingness to dismantle protections against dangerous pollution and climate change. More than 24 million Americans, including 200,000 Ohio children, suffer from asthma. Rolling back fuel efficiency and clean cars standards will only increase pollution, triggering more asthma attacks and other negative public health impacts like respiratory diseases.

Risking the health, jobs, and pocketbooks of hard-working Americans is unacceptable. Revisiting standards that have popular support and proven results is wasteful and short-sighted. We need to keep moving forward with these standards, not slam the brakes on them.