Washington (Platts)--31Jul2007

A US Senate panel passed legislation Tuesday that would force the Bush
administration to expedite its review of California's landmark global warming
regulations for cars and trucks. 

     California needs a special waiver from the Environmental Protection
Agency to implement its regulations, which would require Ford, General
Motors and other automakers to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of all new
vehicles they sell in the state by 30% by 2016.

     California formally applied for the waiver December 2005, but EPA has not
yet ruled on the state's request. EPA has vowed to issue its decision by the
end of 2007, but that's not good enough for many California officials, who say
EPA is dragging its heels on the matter at the request of the automobile
industry, which opposes the regulations. 

     The bill that the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed
Tuesday would require EPA to make a decision on the waiver by September 30,
2007, or no more than 30 days after the legislation itself is signed into law.

     The waiver bill is sponsored by Senator Barbara Boxer of California, the
EPW committee's Democratic chairman. Boxer supports her state's efforts to
regulate GHG emissions from cars and trucks, and she regularly excoriates EPA
for taking so long on the waiver.

     The waiver bill passed the committee by a party-line vote of 10-9, with
all Democrats in favor and all Republicans opposed. 

     Representative Jay Inslee, Democrat-Washington, has introduced an
identical waiver bill in the House. That measure has not yet come up for a
vote. Inslee is involved with the issue because Washington is one of 13 states
that would adopt California's GHG regulations if EPA grants the waiver. 

     The Bush administration has hinted strongly that it will deny
California's waiver request on the grounds that the regulations would infringe
on the federal government's exclusive powers to establish set Corporate
Average Fuel Economy standards. That argument, which is echoed by the auto
industry, holds that the only way that automakers could reduce GHG emissions
would be to increase the fuel-efficiency of their vehicles. 

     California has vowed to sue EPA if its waiver request is denied.

		--Brian Hansen, brian_hansen@platts.com