Stand Up for Fuel Economy Standards

[Matt Freedman <freedman@citizen.org>]

  ACTION ALERT!
  
  The FY1997 Transportation Appropriations Bill could go to the
  House floor as early as June 26.  Several consumer, environmental and 
  public interest groups sent a letter to Representatives opposing the 
  anti-CAFE rider currently attached to the bill.  The letter follows.
  
  Please contact your Representative and let her/him know that you oppose the 
  anti-CAFE rider.  
  
  The Capitol Switchboard number is (202)224-3121.  Direct line and fax 
  numbers as well as email addresses for Representatives can be found on 
  Critical Mass' voting index (http://www.citizen.org/CMEP). 
  
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  OPPOSE ANTI-ENVIRONMENT RIDER TO FREEZE AUTOMOTIVE FUEL ECONOMY
  STANDARDS
  
  June 25, 1996
  
  Dear Representative:
  
  We urge you to oppose the anti-environmental rider in the Transportation 
  Appropriations bill.  The rider freezes fuel economy (CAFE) standards for 
  the second year in a row.  The bill is scheduled to go to the floor this 
  week.
  
  A vote for a CAFE freeze rider in 1996 is a vote against pollution 
  reduction, national energy security, and consumer savings at the gas pump.
  
  CAFE standards cut pollution.  By reducing oil consumption, CAFE standards 
  keep 500,000 tons of carcinogenic hydrocarbon emissions from upstream 
  sources -- refining and transporting of oil, and refueling at the pump -- 
  out of the air we breathe.  The standards, therefore, improve air 
  quality, helping polluted cities like Los Angeles and states achieve 
  Clean Air Act requirements.  They also keep millions of tons of carbon 
  dioxide, the prime greenhouse gas, out of the atmosphere, helping to 
  curb global warming.
  
  CAFE standards are the most successful energy saving measure Congress has 
  ever adopted.  They save 3 million barrels of oil per day, reducing U.S. 
  dependence on imported oil.  Without these savings the U.S. would be 
  importing more oil than we currently do.  Imports now account for 52% of 
  U.S. consumption and contribute $60 billion annually to the national 
  trade deficit.
  
  CAFE standards also result in consumer savings at the gas pump. Because 
  fuel economy for cars doubled between 1975 and the late 1980s, a new car 
  purchaser saves an average of $3,300 at the gas pump over the lifetime 
  of the car.  Annually, CAFE delivers over $40 billion in consumer 
  savings.  Consumers can spend these dollars in their communities on food, 
  housing, and clothing instead of on imported oil.
  
  Freezing CAFE standards prevents the Department of Transportation from 
  fully implementing the law Congress passed and President Ford signed in 
  1975.  The 1996 freeze stopped the rulemaking process for light truck 
  fuel economy in its tracks, denying purchasers of these vehicles the 
  benefits of existing fuel saving technologies.  The CAFE standard for 
  light trucks -- minivans, sport utility vehicles, jeeps and pick-ups -- 
  is only 20.7 mpg. These gas guzzlers now comprise over 40% of the new 
  vehicle market, increasing both demand for oil and pollution.
  
  The current moratorium was one of a series of anti-environmental riders 
  which passed one or both Houses of Congress last year. The American people 
  want strong environmental protection.  We urge you to oppose efforts to 
  restrict this important cost-saving measure and sound environmental program.
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Rev. D. Timothy A. McElwee, Director
  Church of the Brethren, Washington Office
  
  Michael J. Dodd, Director
  Columban Justice and Peace Office
  
  Kay Dowhower, Director
  Lutheran Office for Governmental Affairs
  Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
  
  Reina Neufeldt, Legislative Assistant
  Mennonite Central Committee
  
  Rabbi David Saperstein, Director
  Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
  Union of American Hebrew Congregations
  
  Rev. Meg A. Riley, Director
  Unitarian Universalist Association
  Washington Office for Faith in Action
  
  Thom White Wolf Fassett, General Secretary
  United Methodist General Board of Church and Society
  
  Dave Hamilton, Director of State and Federal Policy
  Alliance to Save Energy
  
  John DeCicco, Senior Associate
  American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy
  
  Clarence Ditlow, Executive Director
  Center for Auto Safety
  
  Margaret Morgan-Hubbard, Executive Director
  Environmental Action
  
  Brent Blackwelder, President
  Friends of the Earth
  
  Deb Callahan, President
  League of Conservation Voters
  
  Mary Marra, Vice President
  Resources Conservation
  National Wildlife Federation
  
  John Adams, Executive Director
  Natural Resources Defense Council
  
  Joan Claybrook, President
  Public Citizen
  
  Carl Pope, Executive Director
  Sierra Club
  
  Alden Meyer, Director of Government Relations
  Union of Concerned Scientists
  
  Gene Karpinski, Executive Director
  U.S. Public Interest Research Group
  
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