A new bill passed has called for a 40% increase in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAF⊃) for automobiles. The increase is intended to force manufacturers to produce more fuel-efficient automobiles. The new bill calls for the CAF⊃ to be raised to 35 miles per gallon
(mph) minimum for all cars, trucks and SUVs by the year 2020. Currently, the CAF⊃ for cars is 27.5 mph and 22.2 for trucks and SUVs.
The bill, which was passed by a vote of 65-27 and still needs to be cleared by the House, also approved of actions that could be taken to penalize gasoline price gouging. The government was also granted broader authority and power to investigate any oil companies involved in the practice.
The bill is being used to make the country less reliant on foreign oil and more environmentally conscious. Supporters of the bill predict that new CAF⊃ standards will save the country up to 2.5 million barrels of oil per day by the year 2025. Supporters are also hoping that the new standards will divert the industry further from fossil fuels and lean more towards ethanol fuels.
