In early December, Trump’s US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced a plan to reduce the federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, meaning that automakers will be no longer have incentive to make cars and light duty trucks as fuel efficient as those currently on the market. In short, new cars and trucks will burn more gas per mile on average, resulting in greater costs to Americans at the pump and more vehicle pollution in the air. We are responding as people of faith, committed to loving stewardship for God's creation and steadfast defense of human health and well-being.
Please prayerfully consider adding your organization or institution to the comment below, which will be submitted to the Federal Register by the National Religious Partnership for the Environment (NRPE). The deadline to sign is Monday February 3, 5pm EST. Email katie@nrpe.org with any questions.
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As faith based and religious organizations committed to caring for God’s creation and honoring the dignity and well-being of all people, particularly the most vulnerable, we write in firm opposition to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposal to weaken the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.
In order to fulfill our moral duty to care for God’s creation, we must recognize the interplay between our environmental, social, and economic realities. Living in right relationship with God, one another, and the earth requires us to be prudent in our use of earth’s natural resources. When we consume more than we need, we are disrespecting the gifts God gave us and causing undue harm to the earth and others.
Our faith traditions teach that technology should serve the good of society. Incentivizing more fuel efficient cars and light duty trucks creates cleaner air for all to breathe and saves families money at the pump. The transportation sector accounts for the largest portion of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the U.S., contributing 29% of total emissions — of that, 58% of the GHG emissions from transportation come from light duty vehicles and cars. These emissions can cause upper respiratory illnesses, kidney disease, preterm birth, cognitive decline, and cardiovascular disease. The more fuel our vehicles burn, the more dangerous, toxic air is polluted into our air.
The cost of rolling back fuel economy standards will be paid for by American families. NHTSA itself has said that, as a result of this rule, the net cost of passenger car and light truck ownership will increase by between $187 and $506 over the vehicle lifetime, driven by a total increase in fuel costs of $1,112 to $1,431 for the 2031 model year. The most vulnerable among us will be hit the hardest by these increased costs, with the lowest-income households in the U.S. spending nearly 20% of their income on transportation fuel, while industry executives benefit.
This rollback poses a threat to the environmental, social, and economic well-being of our nation. We urge you to not rollback these sensible fuel efficiency standards.
Sincerely,
