Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released the following statement after reports the Obama administration has reached an agreement on fuel economy standards with California and major car manufacturers.

The agreement would put in place standards mandated in the bipartisan Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act, introduced by Senators Feinstein and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and signed into law as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.

Senator Feinstein’s statement follows:

“I applaud the Obama administration for coming to agreement with California and auto manufacturers on aggressive new fuel-economy standards that will save American consumers billions of dollars at the pump.

“From what I understand of the agreement, fuel efficiency will see significant increases. However, reports that pickup trucks and SUVs will increase at a lower rate must be shown to meet maximum feasible increases, as mandated by law.

“We set out on this path when the bipartisan Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act—which I introduced with Senator Snowe—was enacted in 2007. The bill required the maximum feasible fuel economy standards for cars, trucks and SUV’s that had been blocked for decades by the auto industry.

“Passenger vehicles account for a significant proportion of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States and the vast majority of our dependence on oil, so it is vitally important that the administration continue to forcefully advocate for maximum feasible fuel economy standards as we move forward in this process.”

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