[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 14 (Thursday, February 6, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1107-S1108]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. ABRAHAM (for himself, Mr. Levin, Mr. Ashcroft, Mr. DeWine, 
        Mr. Bond, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Frist, Mr. Nickles, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. 
        Shelby, Mr. Coats, Mr. Santorum, and Mr. Inhofe):
  S. 286. A bill to provide for a reduction in regulatory costs by 
maintaining Federal average fuel economy standards applicable to 
automobiles in effect at current levels until changed by law, and for 
other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation.


        THE CORPORATE AVERAGE FUEL ECONOMY STANDARDS ACT OF 1997

 Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I introduce legislation with 
Senators Levin and Ashcroft that would freeze the corporate average 
fuel economy standards--known as CAFE--at current levels unless changed 
by Congress.
  Enacted in 1975, CAFE established Federal requirements regulating the 
average fleet fuel economy of new passenger cars and light trucks. Now 
there are a number of reasons why the CAFE standards should continue to 
be frozen at their current level, and there is a great deal of 
information available which documents CAFE's harmful effects. Rest 
assured, I'll touch on both these topics in a moment. But there is one 
overriding reason this legislation needs to be adopted: control of CAFE 
standards must reside with the U.S. Congress.
  Mr. President, the control of CAFE standards is too great a 
responsibility to be entrusted to any entity other than the Congress. 
CAFE requirements were initiated over 20 years ago in response to an 
oil crisis that has long since disappeared. New standards would 
constitute the most tremendous regulation foisted on the automobile 
industry in over two decades and would require a massive retooling, at 
great cost, by America's automakers.
  This is an industry that employs 2.3 million Americans and is 
estimated to provide 4.4 percent of this Nation's GDP. Should the 
authority to impose upon this industry a new regulation with 
questionable goals and dubious results reside with unelected 
bureaucrats? Should regulators at the Department of Transportation have 
the authority to change CAFE standards at any time, for any reason and 
do so without congressional approval? The answer to these questions is 
clearly no. Such a decision in my view belongs with this legislature, 
the body entrusted by our Constitution with the duty to determine 
whether any proposed policy change is in the best interests of the 
American people.
  The other question we need to ask is why a CAFE increase should be 
considered at all. When CAFE was instituted, it was part of a larger 
effort to regulate oil consumption and reduce America's dependence on 
foreign oil. Today, however, it is clear that CAFE standards failed to 
achieve this goal. Domestic manufacturers have increased passenger car 
fuel economy 108 percent and light truck fuel economy almost 60 percent 
since the mid-1970's. Rather than decreasing during this time, however, 
oil imports have increased. In 1974 the United States imported 35 
percent of its oil--last year this country imported between 45 and 50 
percent of its oil.
  Now, with CAFE's obvious failure to reduce oil imports, CAFE 
proponents cite the threat of potential global warming as the major 
rationale for increasing these standards further. Mr. President, the 
argument that CAFE standards will prevent or reduce global warming is 
as weak as the argument that CAFE would reduce this country's reliance 
on foreign oil.
  According to the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, cars 
and light trucks subject to CAFE standards account for only one and 
1\1/2\ percent of global man-made greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing 
CAFE standards to 40 miles per gallon, as has been discussed, would 
result in minuscule reductions in emissions--less than one-half of 1 
percent.
  There can be no doubt, Mr. President, that CAFE standards have failed 
to reduce America's dependency on foreign oil or significantly reduce 
greenhouse gas emissions. So what have they succeeded in doing? They 
have succeeded in putting domestic automobile manufacturers at a 
competitive disadvantage and putting American families at risk of 
severe injury and even death.
  First, on competitiveness. CAFE standards apply to the average fuel 
consumption standards for a company's fleet of cars--that is, the fuel 
economy for all cars sold in one model year is averaged together to 
determine the fleet average. Due to the high price of gasoline in 
Japan, the Japanese have traditionally engineered smaller cars. 
Consequently their automobile fleets come in below the CAFE standards, 
thus allowing them to make larger, less fuel-efficient cars and still 
fall within the CAFE limits for their fleet. According to the National 
Academy of Sciences, ``the CAFE system operated to the benefit of the 
Japanese manufacturers, and at the expense of the domestic 
manufacturers.'' This system continues to this day.
  Despite this inequity, the Department of Transportation continues to 
push for increased CAFE standards, and in 1994 issued an Advanced 
Notice of Proposed Rule Making that suggested setting light truck CAFE 
standards for up to 9 years at levels up to 40 percent higher than they 
are today.
  Compounding their potential harm to our light truck industry, these 
CAFE supporters fail to consider the differences between cars and 
trucks. Many of the fuel efficient technologies used to make cars more 
efficient, such as front wheel drive and increased aerodynamics, cannot 
be used for trucks. Trucks are designed specifically for hauling 
capacity, off-road use and durability. Only one or two very small 
trucks currently provide the level of fuel efficiency sought by CAFE 
proponents, and they account for less than 1 percent of light truck 
sales. The Department of Transportation's CAFE-mandated changes would 
negatively affect American manufacturers by reducing the segment of the 
light-duty truck market--the full-size trucks consumers desire--in 
which they predominate.
  But, important as competitiveness is to our workers and consumers, 
there is a more important reason to freeze CAFE standards: it will save 
lives. Why? Because higher CAFE standards will force automobile 
manufacturers to downsize cars and trucks, and smaller vehicles are 
more dangerous. Automobile experts estimate that almost 50 percent of 
the fuel economy gains made since the mid-1970's are attributable to 
reductions in vehicle size and weight. And what was the cost? In 1991, 
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration concluded that 
vehicle downsizing since the mid-1970's was responsible for an 
additional 2,000 deaths and 20,000 serious injuries on America's 
highways every year.
  Other studies have reached the same, logical conclusion. To 
illustrate the relationship between size and safety, the Insurance 
Institute for Highway Safety studied the occupant death rates of 11 car 
models that had been downsized since 1977. It found that death rates 
were higher for 10 of the 11 vehicle types after downsizing. More 
recently, the institute has determined that, even when equipped with 
airbags, smaller cars are still less safe than larger cars.

[[Page S1108]]

 The National Academy of Sciences also understands that emissions 
controls result in less protection in the event of an accident. 
According to the Academy, ``safety and fuel economy are linked because 
one of the most direct methods of increasing gas mileage is reducing 
size and weight.''
  And what would happen if the new, increased CAFE standards are 
adopted? A study by the Harvard Injury Control Center estimates that an 
increase to proposed CAFE levels would result in downsizing that would 
produce an additional 1,650 deaths and 8,500 serious injuries on our 
highways every year. This is absolutely unacceptable.
  Mr. President, what I find most troubling about efforts to increase 
CAFE standards is that they are simply unnecessary. American automobile 
manufacturers are constantly striving to improve their current product 
and develop innovative new ways to power cars and trucks. And these 
efforts are beginning to show results. In recent weeks, Chrysler has 
announced breakthroughs in fuel-cell technology. By converting gasoline 
into hydrogen, Chrysler's new engine will increase fuel efficiency and 
reduce tailpipe emissions. Similarly, all three auto makers are working 
to develop a gas turbine engine that will combine better efficiency, 
low emissions and quiet performance.
  These technological advances are the result of open competition, not 
Government mandate. This kind of innovation is only produced in a free 
market. Thus, rather than shackling American manufacturers with costly, 
outdated regulations, we should be encouraging them to develop new 
technologies to take the automobile industry into the 21st century.
  Mr. President, the National Academy of Sciences has concluded that, 
``the CAFE approach to achieving automotive fuel economy has defects 
that are sufficiently grievous to warrant careful reconsideration.'' 
This bill is a modest step in that direction. It will permit Congress 
to carefully consider and debate any increases to CAFE standards rather 
than allow the administration to change the standards, at any time and 
for any reason without congressional approval, as is currently the 
case.
  Specifically, this bill will freeze CAFE standards at 27.5 miles per 
gallon for passenger cars and 20.7 miles per gallon for light-duty 
trucks. The transportation appropriations conference report we passed 
last year included a 1-year freeze on CAFE standards. This bill would 
make that freeze permanent unless changed by Congress.
  CAFE standards did not reduce our country's reliance on foreign oil, 
and they are not saving the planet from ozone depletion. CAFE standards 
are hurting American manufacturers and putting American families at 
increased risk of injury or death. All this when the automobile 
industry has shown itself capable of producing the technological 
advances necessary for increased efficiency on its own. Congress should 
fulfill its responsibility as our Nation's law-making body by 
protecting the American people from this instance of excessive and 
counterproductive bureaucratic rule making.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the full text of this 
legislation be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 286

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. AVERAGE FUEL ECONOMY STANDARDS.

       Beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the average 
     fuel economy standards established (whether directly or 
     indirectly) under regulations promulgated by the Secretary of 
     Transportation under chapter 329 of title 49, United States 
     Code, prior to the date of enactment of this Act for 
     automobiles (as that term is defined in section 32901 of 
     title 49, United States Code) that are in effect on the day 
     before the date of enactment of this Act, shall apply without 
     amendment, change, or other modification of any kind (whether 
     direct or indirect) for--
       (1) the model years specified in the regulations;
       (2) the applicable automobiles specified in the regulations 
     last promulgated for such automobiles; and
       (3) each model year thereafter;

     until chapter 329 of title 49, United States Code, is 
     specifically amended to authorize an amendment, change, or 
     other modification to such standards or is otherwise modified 
     or superseded by law.
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