This document provides background information and summarizes the debate over CAFE standards in the 106th Congress. The links to the left will lead you to public documents that we have found.
Since the oil
embargo imposed by Arab countries in the 1970s, political leaders have emphasized
the importance of energy independence. If we as a nation are not going to
be beholden to the countries that produce the oil we need to fuel our cars-and
more broadly fuel our economy-then we must reduce the proportion of energy
usage derived from foreign oil. Some policymakers have strongly advocated
increased domestic energy production as a way of freeing Americans from foreign
oil. Others have encouraged less consumption, advocating smaller cars, more
fuel efficient engines, development of renewable energy sources such as solar
and wind, and more mass transit.
When gas prices
spike upwards the debate over energy independence moves back to center stage.
Generally, though, energy independence has diminished in importance as the
world supply of oil has increased and the prices for gasoline and home heating
oil have remained steady and sometimes even dropped. Environmental groups
like the Sierra Club have continued to work on the issue, especially on Corporate
Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for cars and trucks. The CAFE standards,
first enacted in the 1970s, prescribe the average fuel economy that all cars
sold by each manufacturer must achieve each year. Thus, a car manufacturer
like Ford must sell enough small, fuel efficient cars to balance the more
gas hungry large cars it sells. There are separate CAFE standards for cars
and for light trucks. Due to the popularity of SUV's and minivans (classified
as light trucks), the overall average fuel economy in this nation has been
dropping in recent years.
During the 106th
Congress environmentalists were again pushing for an increase in the fuel
economy standards. They argued that America had become complacent about the
environment and the nation's automobile manufacturers could easily improve
the fuel consumption levels of their cars through improvements in technology
and the use of lighter materials. Those on the other side of the issue, chiefly
the car manufacturers and steel producers, argued against any change. They
had been successful in preceding sessions of Congress in persuading lawmakers
to enact short-term moratoriums forbidding the Department of Transportation
from raising the CAFE standards. The car and steel manufacturers made a number
of arguments to legislators. As one lobbyist put it, "If fuel efficiency
standards are raised, then manufacturers will go with something lighter [to
construct the vehicles]. If lighter materials are used safety and cost become
an issue. Lighter cars tend to be less safe and steel is less expensive than
alternative materials."
Although Americans
show great support for environmental causes and the large environmental lobbies
have memberships in the hundreds of thousands, there is quite a divide in
the public over what kinds of cars they prefer. In the absence of higher gas
prices, there's been little pressure on Congress to raise the CAFE standards
except from the environmental lobbies. The effort to raise the CAFE standards
for light trucks and vans failed in the 106th Congress. In the 107th Congress
President Bush supported a tiny increase in the CAFE standards but it is so
modest that environmentalists did not consider its enactment even a small
victory.