A federal court in Vermont has upheld California’s landmark global warming tailpipe standards against a legal attack brought by the auto industry.
A Vermont federal judge ruled that states can regulate vehicle emissions, giving California’s efforts to regulate emissions a boost. The judge rejected U.S. automakers claims that they don’t have the technology to meet the new standards and that the standards are pre-empted by federal law.
California’s emissions standards, which are outlined in a 2002 California law aren’t “sufficiently draconian” to usurp the federal government’s right to set fuel economy standards said U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions, who expressed confidence in car manufacturers ability to build cleaner cars.
During the three-week trial in Vermont, attorneys for the automotive industry argued that carmakers lack the technology needed to meet the tougher emissions standards. Sessions was unconvinced, writing in his 240-page decisions that the companies “have not carried their burden to show that compliance with the regulation is not feasible; nor have they demonstrated that it will limit consumer choice, create economic hardship for the automobile industry, cause significant job loss or undermine safety.”
The ruling makes it much more likely that California will win against its automaker suit, now awaiting trial in Fresno. At stake is whether carmakers will produce fleets with an average fuel economy of an estimated 43.5 mpg in 2016, up from 27.5 mpg today.
“This stunning ruling will be seen as a turning point in the fight to protect Americans from the worst consequences of global warming,” says Michelle Robinson, director of the Clean Vehicles Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
“Today, Judge Sessions affirmed what we at the Union of Concerned Scientists have been saying for years: Automakers have the technology today to meet this global warming pollution standard in a cost-effective way. Vermont and 11 other states have been leading the way by adopting this standard that originated in California, and now the federal government should adopt a standard that is at least as stringent.
“Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency now has no excuse to stand in the way of state implementation. If the agency granted the necessary waiver, the dozen states that have adopted the standard would be able to cut as a much as 100 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2020.”
Vermont is one of 12 states with emissions standards based on a 2002 California law that requires CO2 to be cut 30 percent by 2016. Six the states – Arizona, Florida, New Mexico, Utah, Illinois, and Minnesota – are considering similar emissions requirements. In total, these 18 states make up about half the U.S. auto market.
Suits similar to the Vermont case have been filed against California and Rhode Island, however, federal judges could dismiss those, if they feel the automotive industry has had a chance to present its case in court.
Schwarzenegger and the governors of New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and nine other states sent a letter Wednesday to six auto-company chief executives urging them to abandon further legal challenges and embrace emissions standards that will reduce the threat of global warming.
With states leading the way, environmental allies hope the U.S. Congress will adopt a more demanding federal mandate to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.
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