New CAFE Standards Are Good — But Hardly the Best Climate Policy
In a new post over at the Progressive Fix, Nathan takes an in-depth look at CAFE standards released last week by the EPA. While pushing the U.S. fleet-wide fuel economy to 35 miles per gallon by 2020 is certainly a step forward, he wonders whether that step—and its underlying analysis—is really taking U.S. climate policy […]
How Much Will New Vehicle Efficiency Standards Really Help Climate (or Consumers)?
Cars and trucks sold in the U.S. will have to be a little more efficient, according to new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards released today by the EPA. CAFE standards are our standard tool for promoting vehicle efficiency, and have been the subject of past research here at RFF. The new standards are largely […]
Fueling the Fleet with Natural Gas
In the latest installment of RFF’s Weekly Policy Commentary, RFF Senior Fellow Alan Krupnick takes a closer look at the economic, energy and environmental benefits of natural gas vehicles. Interest in technologies to run vehicles on natural gas has been replenished recently as projections for recoverable domestic natural gas sources have grown. According to Krupnick, […]
The Intersection of Autos and Policy
U.S. auto policy is in the midst of a revival of relevance in the wake of Cash for Clunkers and with the nation watching the Obama administration’s handling of GM. Recently, RFF’s Weekly Policy Commentary series set out to examine key components of other U.S. auto policies. In this November 13 commentary, RFF fellow Shanjun […]
Evaluating Cash for Clunkers: The Jury is Still Out
This summer’s “Cash for Clunkers” program has been vastly more successful at generating new car sales than expected. Under the so-called Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) passed by Congress at the end of July, qualifying car buyers could trade in old cars and trucks for more fuel efficient new vehicles and receive a rebate of […]
Is Hydrogen the Best Bet for Autos?
A rift has opened between the Department of Energy and Congress as Washington players place their bets on alternative fuel sources for automobiles. Energy Secretary Chu wants to cut programs that fund hydrogen fuel cell research and says funding could be better used to improve current combustion and plug-in technologies. Some members of Congress argue […]
A Closer Look at ‘Cash for Clunkers’
A pair of bills making their way through the House and Senate would allow auto dealers to provide vouchers to consumers toward the replacement of their existing vehicles with new vehicles getting better fuel economy. The vouchers are worth $3,500 to $4,500, depending on the type of vehicle being replaced, its fuel economy, and the […]
Electric Cars Get Strong Support In Waxman-Markey
To cut American consumption of gasoline and greenhouse gas emissions, the Waxman-Markey climate change bill would give a powerful push to electric cars. The bill would require utilities to develop plans to support the use of plug-in vehicles. Among other things, the bills says, that might mean installing electric charging stations in homes, parking garages, […]
Time for Automotive Emissions Labels?
As a companion the newly-announced plan for CAFE standards, the EPA is likely to use its authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate CO2 emissions from autos on a gram-per-mile basis. With these new developments the time might be right for the government to provide car buyers with gram-per-mile information they can incorporate into […]
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