Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) said on Thursday that he would lead an effort to block President Obama’s recent announcement that mid- and large-sized trucks would be subjected to more stringent fuel efficiency standards.
Roberts said he would introduce a resolution of disapproval because the new fuel efficiency standards could create safety concerns and would have no measurable effect on climate change.
“Instead of letting the markets determine what kinds of trucks are produced, the president is doing it, and in the end, it will be the consumer and the taxpayer who pay for it,” Roberts said. “I have already heard from many Kansans worried about this announcement increasing the price of trucks they need for their businesses.”
Roberts said truck manufacturers were already required to improve fuel efficiency standards by 10 to 20 percent by 2018.
Obama announced on Tuesday he would issue a directive to the EPA and Department of Transportation to enforce new fuel efficiency standards for vehicles weighing more than 8,500 pounds beginning in March 2016.
The new regulations would apply to trucks manufactured in subsequent model years, according to the Obama administration.
Heavy-duty vehicles account for approximately 4 percent of registered vehicles in the United States but produce approximately a quarter of transportation greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA.