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U.S. NEWS Friday 7 June 2019

Automakers urge California, U.S. to restart mileage talks

By KATHLEEN RONAYNE ing per gallon (3.8 liters) of California, the nation's most
Associated Press gas by 2025. The goal is for populous state, has consid-
SACRAMENTO, Calif. Americans to fill up their erable influence over the
(AP) — Major automobile gas tanks less frequently, auto market.
manufacturers urged the sending fewer climate- Roughly a dozen states
Trump administration and changing emissions and have used its emissions
California on Thursday to pollutants into the air. standards in the past, ac-
restart negotiations over Instead, the administration counting for about a third
vehicle mileage standards is halting the tougher stan- of the market.
to prevent a lengthy legal dards at a 2020 require- The automakers suggested
battle, warning that mov- ment that cars achieve 30 Thursday that the adminis-
ing ahead with two sets of miles (48 kilometers) per tration consider adopting
standards would create in- gallon of real-word driving. a standard that's halfway
stability in the auto market. It also wants to take away between its latest proposal
"What works best for con- California's long-held abil- and what California wants. In this Dec. 10, 2015, file photo, vehicles make their way west-
bound on Interstate 80 across the San Francisco-Oakland Bay
sumers, communities, and ity to set its own, tougher They also called for a stan- Bridge as seen from Treasure Island in San Francisco.
the millions of U.S. employ- standards, first granted in dard that "achieves year- Associated Press
ees that work in the auto 1970 under the Clean Air over-year improvements"
industry is one national Act as the state dealt with in fuel economy and facili- nies said such collabora- version of the mileage roll-
standard that is practical, oppressive smog. Under tates the use of "alternative tion would lead to greater backs soon.
achievable, and consistent the Obama rules, though, powertrains," such as elec- greenhouse gas emissions Dan Becker, director of the
across the 50 states," the 17 California and the federal tric vehicles. reductions than having two Center for Auto Security's
companies including Hon- government were on the "We strongly believe the standards. Safe Climate Campaign,
da, Ford and Mercedes- same page. best path to preserve good "We know that reaching an said the letter shows auto-
Benz wrote in a letter ad- California has already sued auto jobs and keep new agreement has been chal- makers want weaker stan-
dressed to Trump. to block the changes, and vehicles affordable for lenging, but the stakes are dards and more loopholes.
At issue is a Trump adminis- both sides have accused more Americans is a final too high and the benefits "Had they sent this months
tration roll back of tougher the other of failing to nego- rule supported by all par- too important to accept ago, maybe it wouldn't be
Obama-era mileage stan- tiate a middle ground. The ties — including California," the status quo," they wrote too late. But now they're
dards that would require Trump administration for- they wrote. to Newsom. closing the garage door af-
cars to get 36 miles (58 ki- mally cut off talks with the In the letter to Newsom, The administration is ex- ter the gas guzzler has fled,"
lometers) of real-world driv- state in February. meanwhile, the compa- pected to release its final Becker said in an email.q