Apr 122022

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Finalizes Model Year 2024-26 Vehicle Fuel Economy Standards

Aaron L. Flyer and Samuel B. Boxerman
, , ,

On Friday, April 1, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced its final fuel economy standards for model year 2024-26 vehicles. The final rule increases vehicle efficiency requirements, as represented through vehicle-footprint-based targets, 8% annually for model years 2024 and 2025 and 10% for 2026, which the agency concludes represents the maximum feasible level manufactures can achieve for these model years. NHTSA predicts that the new standards will yield an industrywide average fuel economy of approximately 49 miles per gallon for model year 2026 passenger cars and light trucks, which represents an increase of 10 miles per gallon over model year 2021.

As required by President Joe Biden’s January 20, 2021, Executive Order 13990, NHTSA’s final rule amends the model year 2021-26 standards set forth by the prior administration in its 2020 Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient Vehicle (SAFE) Rule. NHTSA considers that the new standards are appropriate, in part, because 1) the standards recognize that shortly after the agency finalized the SAFE rule, five major automakers voluntarily agreed to meet heighted fuel economy requirements through an agreement with California, and 2) the standards are consistent with the Environmental Protection Agency’s recently adopted carbon dioxide standards such that manufacturers can meet both standards with the same vehicle fleet. The final rule is awaiting publication in the Federal Register and will take effect 60 days from publication.

This post is as of the posting date stated above. Sidley Austin LLP assumes no duty to update this post or post about any subsequent developments having a bearing on this post.

Aaron L. Flyer

Samuel B. Boxerman

Washington, D.C.

sboxerman@sidley.com

You might also like
EPA Appeals Dismissal of Suit Against eBay

On November 26, 2024, the United States, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), appealed a district court decision dismissing the government’s claims that eBay violated the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

EPA Publishes First-Of-Its-Kind Framework for Considering Cumulative Impacts Across Agency Actions

On November 21, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published Notice of a newly developed draft framework intended to provide all EPA programs with a shared reference point for determining when and how to analyze or consider cumulative impacts—defined broadly to include the totality of exposures to combinations of environmental stressors and their effects on health and quality-of-life outcomes.  Keeping pace with the Biden administration EPA’s environmental justice drive, key goals of the Interim Framework for Advancing Consideration of Cumulative Impacts include empowering EPA to (1) more fully and accurately characterize the realities communities face, (2) pinpoint the levers of decision making and identify opportunities for interventions that improve health and quality of life while advancing equity, and (3) increase meaningful engagement, improve transparency, and center actions on improving health and environmental conditions in communities.

U.S. EPA Removes Regulatory Affirmative Defense Provision Against Alleged Violations of Oil and Gas Facility NESHAPs

On October 22, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule removing an affirmative defense from Clean Air Act (CAA) National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) regulations for the Oil and Natural Gas Production Facility and Natural Gas Transmission and Storage Facility Source Categories (Final Rule).[1] Prior to the Final Rule, owners or operators could assert an affirmative defense that alleged NESHAP standard violations were caused by an equipment malfunction.[2] A “malfunction” is defined as any sudden, infrequent, and not reasonably preventable failure of air pollution control and monitoring equipment, process equipment, or a process to operate in a normal or usual manner.[3]