On August 5 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a notice of proposed rulemaking for greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light-duty trucks. In its proposal, EPA presented two alternatives for standards to promote cleaner vehicles and improved air quality.
Consumer Reports’ analysis of EPA’s proposal found the agency’s preferred alternative falls short of the reforms needed, and that the loopholes and extra credits included are an unnecessary giveaway to automakers. Loopholes are complex credit schemes that appear to create emissions reductions on paper, but fail to deliver real-world benefits to consumers and the environment. EPA’s current proposal includes electric vehicle multipliers, off-cycle credits, and hybrid pick-up credits.
The analysis has been summarized in a fact sheet, which is available as a downloadable PDF on this page.