Kerry on Court's Decision to Close Bush's SUV Loophole, Enforce Fuel Standards

11/15/2007

Kerry on Court's Decision to Close Bush's SUV Loophole, Enforce Fuel Standards

WASHINGTON D.C. – Senator John Kerry made the following statement today, when the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals struck down the Bush administration’s flawed fuel economy standard for sport-utility vehicles and light-duty trucks.


“Today’s decision from the 9th Circuit sends a clear and compelling message to the Bush administration that gone are the days of ignoring our environmental laws without consequences,” said Kerry. “We need real steps to combat climate change, and getting serious about fuel economy is a great start. I am proud that the Senate passed a strong energy bill to help address climate change and reduce our oil dependence. In the same spirit as this court decision, we demanded action and accountability, including major increases in fuel efficiency for the first time in decades. I urge President Bush and his Roadblock Republican allies to listen to Congress, the courts, and the American people and make that bill the law of the land.”


The court ruled that the administration’s standard failed to account for the value of reducing heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions and failed to close the SUV loophole, which has allowed auto manufacturers to classify vehicles used primarily for transporting passengers as trucks, which are asked to meet more lax fuel economy standards.

Court rebukes Bush fuel economy plan

By PAUL ELIAS, Associated Press Writer
Fri Nov 16

SAN FRANCISCO - A federal appeals court sharply rejected the Bush administration's new pollution standards 'for most sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks and vans and ordered regulators Thursday to draft a new plan that's tougher on auto emissions.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration failed to address why the so-called light trucks are allowed to pollute more than passenger cars and didn't properly assess greenhouse gas emissions when it set new minimum miles-per-gallon requirements for models in 2008 to 2011.

The court also said the administration failed to include in the new rules heavier trucks driven as commuter vehicles, among several other deficiencies found.

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"The idea of raising vehicle efficiency 1 mile per gallon is pathetic and shocking," said Brown, who along with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is suing the Bush administration over its refusal to act on California's fuel economy plan for cars in the state.

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