A recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report critical of electric vehicle incentives raises some interesting points about technology development, but fundamentally misses the mark on the role that advanced technology incentives play. Read More
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Congressional Budget Office and Media Miss the Point on Electric Vehicle Incentives
October 25th, 2012
New “Attributes” of the Clean Vehicle Standards
August 21st, 2012
In order to grasp vehicle greenhouse gas and fuel economy rules, the first thing to understand is the so-called “attribute-based system.” In this second part of our “Anatomy of a Rule” mini-series, we’re going to take a moment to demystify it. Read More
Clean Vehicle Standards: Anatomy of a Rule
August 21st, 2012
They say honesty is the best policy. My vote is for vehicle standards. Puns aside, it’s true that today’s cars are safer, cleaner, and more fuel-efficient than their predecessors because of vehicle standards. But let’s face it, outside of the folks who deal with these regulations on a daily basis, very few people have any idea how they work, or what they will (and won’t) do. Worse yet, a lot of misinformation exists on these topics. Enter this first post in a new blog mini-series. Read More
Congressional Budget Office Embraces Fiction in Latest Analysis
May 7th, 2012
Following the old adage, “Never let the facts get in the way of a good story,” the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issued a report last week blaming an upcoming set of vehicle fuel economy and emissions standards for an anticipated gaping deficit in the Highway Trust Fund. Salacious as it may sound, CBO’s analysis rings far closer to fiction than reality. Read More
Mile by Mile, Electric Vehicles Show Us the Money
April 26th, 2012
Tired of pump price volatility? You might want to check out an electric car. Read More
Nissan Leaf Goes Upscale With Infiniti Makeover
April 5th, 2012
At the New York auto show today, Nissan’s luxury brand, Infiniti, unveiled the LE Concept, a car sharing many of the same drivetrain components as the Nissan Leaf electric vehicle. Read More
Sipping Sells at the New York Auto Show
April 4th, 2012
Judging from the early unveilings, the companies got the memo: Fuel economy sells. The mood is upbeat here on the Javits Center floor, with talk of a returning economy, industry profits, and the fact that the auto industry is poised to see its best sales month since 2008. And make no mistake, fuel-efficient products are playing a critical role. Read More
Oil Industry Subsidies Are Anything But Rosy
March 29th, 2012
I had the pleasure of being at the White House Rose Garden this morning, when President Obama called upon Congress to eliminate oil and gas subsidies that are financially buoying an industry already soaring on record profits. This is a good idea, and a long overdue one. Read More
Bringing Up the Average, On the Showroom Floor
March 29th, 2012
Baseball season is upon us. This is an optimistic time for most fans, and particularly so for longtime Chicago Cubs fans like me who, it seems, all too often have less to cheer about as the season rolls on.
If you are a fan, or you recently watched Moneyball, you probably know that baseball is a game of statistics — ERA (earned run average), slugging percentage, batting average, etc. So, it was in this tradition that I spent an afternoon this past weekend, with a Cubs spring training game on in the background, digging into data to help me understand which car and truck classes offer consumers real choices for fuel-efficient vehicles, and which don’t. Read More
In the City of Brotherly Love, Much Love for Clean Car Standards
January 20th, 2012
I’m in Philadelphia today, testifying at a public hearing on the recently proposed model year 2017-2025 vehicle greenhouse gas and fuel economy standards. Read More
