Alabama Leaders Oppose Clean Car Standards Rollback
by Alexander Richey
Local and state leaders and students gathered at Birmingham’s Linn Park Tuesday to oppose the Trump administration’s proposed rollback of clean car standards. Trump has vowed to rollback an Obama-era policy that requires carmakers to double fuel efficiency by 2025.
The 2012 rule was meant to curb greenhouse gases and produce more electric and hybrid vehicles. State Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison spoke at the event and directed a message to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “Live up to your standards and your mission.Protect environment and human health, not big industry,” she said. “Do your job and protect citizens.”
The EPA submitted a proposal to freeze fuel economy standards. The administration says the regulations are burdensome and can hurt job growth in the automotive industry. But conservation groups say the change could create confusion among auto makers. Car manufacturers have already invested billions of dollars to produce and design more fuel efficient vehicles.
Alabama is the fifth-largest auto manufacturer in the country and employs nearly 40,000 people. The Mercedes plant in Tuscaloosa is slated to begin production of a new hybrid SUV in 2019.
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