U.S. Legislative Updates

On February 28, the D.C. Court of Appeals began hearing oral arguments in the legal challenge to limits on greenhouse gas emissions set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Environmental groups and activists concerned about global warming support the EPA regulations because the U.S. Congress has not yet enacted legislation to cap emissions. The petitioners, who combined a dozen separate similar lawsuits under the name the Coalition for Responsible Regulation, will target four EPA rules:

• The "endangerment finding" - the scientific finding made by the EPA in December 2009 that found that greenhouse gases endanger public health, enabling the agency to regulate them under the Clean Air Act
• The "tailpipe rule" - the May 2010 rule, which set greenhouse gas emission and fuel economy standards for new light-duty vehicles
• The "timing rule" - the April 2010 rule that will require generators and industrial plants to apply for permits to cover greenhouse gas emissions once the rules for vehicles kick in
• The "tailoring rule" issued in June 2010, which set a timeline to start requiring those industrial and utility sources to apply for permits according to the scale of their emissions

Challengers to the EPA climate program range from governments of states and municipalities where employment and tax revenue depend on industries that emit greenhouse gasses, to business lobby groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. These groups argue that the 1970 Clean Air Act was never intended for regulating greenhouse gasses.


NAFA joined with other organizations in sending a letter to congressional leaders expressing support for H.R. 3374, the Hybrid Truck Incentives Improvement Act. H.R. 3374 would extend and expand the expired tax incentives for hybrid and battery electric medium and heavy duty vehicles. The legislation extends the medium and heavy duty hybrid vehicle incentive through the end of 2015.  Credit amounts are based on a vehicle’s fuel efficiency performance. The bill increases the technology-neutral, performance-based credit amounts to address the incremental cost of hybrid and battery electric platforms and would recognize efficiency gains in the largest vehicles in the fleet. It also updates the credit’s eligibility requirements to include fully electric trucks.