YPSILANTI, Mich. — President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that the administration will re-examine federal requirements governing the fuel efficiency of cars and trucks, moving forcefully against Obama-era environmental regulations that Trump says are stifling economic growth.
Trump revealed his plans during a speech at an automotive testing center near Detroit, where he also met with auto executives and workers.
“This is going to be a new era for American jobs and job creation,” Trump said at a round-table meeting at the American Center for Mobility.
The EPA under Obama had promulgated a rule for cars and trucks requiring a fleet-wide average of 36 mpg in real-world driving by 2025.
Trump’s decision, while having no immediate effect, requires the Environmental Protection Agency to determine no later than April 2018 whether the 2022-2025 standards established are appropriate. If the EPA determines they are not appropriate, the agency will submit a new proposal next year.
“My administration will work tirelessly to eliminate the industry-killing regulations, to lower the job-crushing taxes and to ensure a level playing field for all American companies and workers,” Trump said at the center, which produced B-24 bombers during World War II and is being converted into an automotive testing and product development facility.
Trump’s announcement is expected to set the stage for weaker fuel efficiency standards as well as drawn-out legal battles with environmental groups and states such as California that adopted their own tailpipe standards for drivers.
California Gov. Jerry Brown accused Trump and Pruitt of trying to weaken auto-emission standards in what he called “an unconscionable gift to polluters.”
Brown and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced their states are intervening in a lawsuit challenging the EPA rule.
Environmental groups said Trump and his team appeared intent on easing gas-mileage requirements set by Obama.
“If they succeed we’ll pay more at the pump, depend more on oil from bad countries, drive up the trade deficit and pollute our kids’ atmosphere,” said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Campaign.