Obama Will Lead Fuel Rules Discussion

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will invite senior auto industry officials and commercial truck makers to a meeting today as his administration begins work on a variety of nationwide fuel economy standards, reported The Detroit News.

The event appears to be the beginning of an effort to avoid having California and other states set separate fuel economy rules beginning in 2017. But the White House also is trying to speed up gas mileage regulations for commercial trucks.

Under a 2007 law, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration alone must set new fuel efficiency rules for medium- and heavy-duty trucks by 2016. A White House official said Obama will direct the Environmental Protection Agency and NHTSA to work together on setting standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks for model years 2014-18.

Obama also is directing the EPA to jointly set tailpipe emissions limits for heavy trucks -- something not required by the 2007 law.

The rules will save "money with lower fuel consumption and lower shipping costs, allowing truck and fleet operators to save, grow, and reinvest," a senior White House official said.

Top officials from Cummins Corp., Daimler Trucks North America, Navistar International Corp. and Volvo Trucks have been invited to attend the White House event today, along with Detroit Big Three, Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Corp. executives.

Obama also will call for more electric vehicles; he has set a goal of 1 million plug-in vehicles on the roads by 2015. His approach "preserves consumer choice and does not dictate the size of cars, trucks, or SUVs," a White House official said.