Washington, DC-  Representative Edward J. Markey (D-MA), a senior Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, a co-author of a bipartisan bill to raise Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, today reacted with disappointment to the Bush Administration’s long-awaited release of updates to the rules governing minimum acceptable fuel economy standards for light trucks and SUVs.

“The President says we are addicted to oil, but this announcement is like giving up gin and switching to tequila,” said Rep. Markey.  “While the final fuel economy standards for light trucks are an improvement over the Bush Administration’s inadequate earlier proposal, the only way to really cure our addiction is to support efforts to meaningfully increase CAFE standards for ALL cars and light trucks.  We could be doing so much more using technologies that are already commercially available.  As the summer driving season nears and fuel prices begin their predictable annual rise, the importance of raising fuel economy standards for cars could not be clearer.” 

During Committee, Floor and Conference action on the Energy bill, Rep. Markey offered amendments that would have achieved a meaningful increase in CAFE standards. The provisions, aimed at reducing the U.S. dependence on foreign oil, faced significant opposition from the automotive industry and were defeated in the House of Representatives.  Rep. Markey is also a co-author of stand-alone legislation that would raise CAFE standards for cars and light trucks from the current level of 25 miles per gallon (mpg) to 33 mpg over the next 10 years. By 2025, this move would save 2.6 million barrels of oil each day. 

For more information regarding the Rep. Markey’s work in the area of energy and the environment, please see http://markey.house.gov/