The Road to a Better America
By Kateri Callahan
 With
gasoline remaining over $2.00 a gallon and the price of a barrel
of oil in the $50.00 range, American consumers are finally waking
up to the personal and societal implications of our country’s
over-reliance on petroleum in the transportation sector. And, importantly,
Americans are turning to their political leaders for help in reducing
the high price of gasoline. A recent Gallup poll showed that energy
prices were one of the top five topics that Americans would discuss
with the President if they had 15 minutes of his time.
At the Alliance to Save Energy, we believe that the cheapest,
quickest, and cleanest way to lower pump prices is to reduce demand
through federal policies that encourage greater efficiency in the
transportation sector. We have developed a package of transportation-related,
energy efficiency provisions that we estimate could reduce energy
use in the transportation sector by approximately 0.5 quads annually
by 2010, adding up to 20.2 quads through 2020. (As a point of reference,
the entire U.S. – buildings, transportation, industry – currently
uses about 100 quads of energy annually.)
First, we call for closing the loopholes and fixing the problems
with the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program, under which
overall fuel economy has gone down in recent years. We advocate
revising the testing procedures so that fuel economy ratings actually
reflect real, on-road fuel economy, and redefining SUVs and minivans
to be what they actually are: passenger vehicles. We also suggest
revising the credit for dual-fuel vehicles to require actual use
of alternative fuels.
The Alliance also advocates a market-based approach that promises
continuous improvement in vehicle fuel economy. A “feebate” system
would impose a national security surcharge, or “fee,” on
inefficient vehicles, and use the funds collected to provide a
rebate to the most efficient vehicles. The fee or rebate would
be based upon a vehicle’s expected lifetime fuel use and
rates could be set so that the program was self-funding. This system
would continue to allow consumers a full range of model options
while assuring that overall fleet economy continues to improve.
We also call for federal tax incentives to encourage consumers
to purchase hybrid electric and other advanced, energy efficient
technologies; a repeal of the $25,000 SUV small business tax deduction;
and legislation that would allow hybrids to qualify as a compliance
option for fleets covered by the EPAct alternative fuel vehicle
purchase requirements.
Unfortunately, the House energy bill (HR 6) only nibbles around
the edges of our transportation woes. It would provide consumer
tax credits ($500 to $3500) for purchasing lean-burn diesel vehicles
(not hybrids); require EPA to update test adjustment factors for
determining fuel economy (but they wouldn’t affect CAFE standards);
require a DOT study on the feasibility and effects of reducing
the use of fuel for automobiles (but not mandate CAFE reforms or
increases); and require federal dual fuel vehicles to operate on
alternative fuels, but still allow automakers to receive CAFE credits
for dual fuel vehicles even if they don’t run on the alternative
fuel.
Energy legislation in the Senate also falls short of making real
improvements to transportation fuel efficiency. While the bill
requires the President to develop and implement measures to reduce
U.S. oil demand by one million barrels per day by 2015, and it
includes tax incentives for the purchase of hybrid vehicles, the
Senate ultimately was unwilling to include any CAFE reforms or
increases in its bill.
The Alliance to Save Energy will continue to sound our “call
for action” by Congress to include policies and programs
in comprehensive energy legislation that will improve the efficiency
of our transportation sector, a critical key to national energy
security, a cleaner environment, and a more competitive economy.
Kateri Callahan is President of the Alliance to Save Energy (www.ase.org),
a coalition of prominent business, government, environmental, and
consumer leaders who promote the efficient and clean use of energy
worldwide to benefit consumers, the environment, the economy, and
national security.
|
