December 03, 2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a proposal to roll back Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards for passenger cars and light trucks for model years 2027-2031. CAFE standards reduce oil consumption by requiring automakers to put proven fuel-saving technologies to work on new vehicles. Reducing oil consumption saves consumers millions at the pump and cuts tailpipe pollution, including the pollution driving the climate crisis.
“The Environmental Law & Policy Center condemns NHTSA’s misguided rollback of CAFE standards. This rollback is one more step by the Trump Administration to attack sensible standards that are good for consumers, our environment and the climate.
Since 1975, CAFE standards have ensured that internal-combustion vehicles use less oil and emit less pollution. As millions of Americans take to the roads this holiday season, weakening CAFE standards will only make future trips more expensive. Rolling them back will squander more than $23 billion in savings at the gas pump and undermine progress toward cleaner air.
With climate change heating up the Great Lakes region and communities around the globe, stronger standards deliver greater benefits to consumers and the climate. Going backwards will drain dollars from consumers’ wallets at the pump, leave fuel-saving technologies on automakers’ shelves, and worsen air quality and climate change.
On top of EPA’s rollback of greenhouse gas tailpipe standards, the Trump administration is walking away from ensuring we have cleaner, more affordable, efficient and less polluting vehicles.”