Obama Plugs Up Tailpipes: Will Announce Auto Mileage, Emissions Standards

The Associate Press (AP) reported this morning that "President Barack Obama's proposed new fuel and emission standards for cars and trucks will save billions of barrels of oil but are expected to cost consumers an extra $1,300 per vehicle by the time the plan is complete in 2016.

Today, Obama will announce the first-ever national emissions limits for vehicles, including an overall average of 39 miles per gallon for cars and 30 mpg for trucks by 2016.

According to AP, Obama's plan effectively puts an to the feud between automakers and statehouses over emission standards and "couples for the first time pollution reduction from vehicle tailpipes with increased efficiency on the road. It would save 1.8 billion barrels of oil through 2016 and would be the environmental equivalent to taking 177 million cars off the road, senior administration officials said, speaking anonymously ahead of the announcement."

I'm still looking for some data to back up these claims, but I agree that raising these standards is long overdue -- and may even spur innovation.

Read the AP story here: Emissions.

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