U.S. states sue Trump administration over fuel efficiency rollback 2

(Reuters, 28 May 2020) 23 states say the weakening of Obama-era rules are a gift to the fossil-fuel industry, while the government admits the move will hike carbon emissions.

A group of 23 U.S. states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit on Wednesday challenging a Trump administration decision to weaken Obama-era fuel efficiency standards.

In March, the administration issued final rules requiring 1.5% annual increases in vehicle fuel efficiency through 2026 - far weaker than the 5% increases set under former President Barack Obama. The Trump administration also abandoned its August 2018 proposal to freeze requirements at 2020 levels through 2026.

California Air Resources Board chair Mary Nichols said the administration "used questionable science, faulty logic and ludicrous assumptions to justify what they wanted from the start: to gut and rewrite the single most important air regulation of the past decade."

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Reuters, 28 May 2020: U.S. states sue Trump administration over fuel efficiency rollback 2