We all know that the Democratic Representative from the Automakers Michigan, John Dingell, is a foe of state-based regulations over the auto industry. Back in February, he tried to revive an excised portion of the energy bill that would have made federal CO₂ limits take precedence over state rules. In an editorial in Automotive News (subs req'd), Edward Lapham writes that it's Dingell who will be of very few lawmakers who "get" why America needs a national fuel economy law instead of allowing states to set their own rules. The three major presidential candidates, Lapham writes, don't get it and neither do many other in Congress. Lapham even equates states setting their own fuel economy rules "would be akin to letting them print their own money." For Lapham and Dingell, the protracted wait between federal increases in the CAFE standard must have looked pretty good. If all the power sits in Washington, then you can slow laws down there and be all set. I mean, if the feds retain control, then Dave McCurdy might be able to stay home more.

[Source: Edward Lapham / Automotive News (subs req'd)]

Colorado Capitol. Photo by Cpt. Spock. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

We know that 18 states are getting serious with legal action against the EPA on a national level, but local emissions fights in state legislatures also bear watching. Harry Stoffer, writing in Automotive News, describes how a "top industry lobbyist" and president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Dave McCurdy, is going around to statehouses to work against state-based CO₂ rules. In three states - Minnesota, Colorado and Montana - McCurdy's efforts seem to be paying off; those states are retreating from efforts to implement stricter emissions laws. It's no secret that the automakers are against a patchwork of state laws that - gasp - might result in a cleaner environment but would put pressure on automakers to make vehicles that are even cleaner than federal law requires. McCurdy issued a statement against the ruling of a Federal Judge in favor of states regulating greenhouse gases, for example. Still, the next time we talk to Charles Territo or someone else in the Alliance, we'll be sure to ask about all this.

[Source: Harry Stoffer / Automotive News]