Responding to reports that the Obama administration has finalized the review of greenhouse gas emissions standards for light duty vehicles fourteen months ahead of schedule, Robbie Diamond, President and CEO of Securing America’s Future Energy, said:

“Vehicle efficiency standards are fundamental to reducing the nation’s oil dependence and its many associated costs for our economic and national security. But we must respect the process through which these standards are reviewed. American mobility is changing and companies such as Uber and Lyft that have become critical parts of our transportation system did not even exist when these standards were created. We look forward to working with the incoming administration as it examines the national security advantages of vehicle efficiency standards and finds innovative ways to leverage them to improve American competitiveness.”

SAFE’s 2016 National Strategy for Energy Security calls on federal regulators to consider revising fuel economy standards to better account for the system-wide impacts of autonomous vehicle technology and fleet driving behaviors. Autonomous vehicle technology has developed rapidly over the last several years and is on a trajectory to materially impact the U.S. transportation system before 2025 and radically transform transportation in the years that follow. SAFE believes that autonomous vehicles could expedite the shift to advanced fuels like electricity and encourage the scaling of new business models such as mobility-on-demand. SAFE encourages regulators to account for these considerations as soon as feasible, and submitted its recommendations to regulators through public comments in September 2016. SAFE was instrumental in the design and passage of fuel economy standards in 2007’s Energy Independence and Security Act.

About Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE)

Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) is an action-oriented, nonpartisan organization that aims to reduce America’s dependence on oil. Near-total dependence on petroleum in the transportation sector undermines the nation’s economic and national security, and constrains U.S. foreign policy. To combat these threats, SAFE advocates for expanded domestic production of U.S. oil and gas resources, continued improvements in vehicle fuel efficiency, and transportation sector innovations including electric vehicles, natural gas trucks, and autonomous vehicles. In 2006, SAFE joined with General P.X. Kelley (Ret.), 28th Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, and Frederick W. Smith, Chairman, President, and CEO of FedEx Corporation, to form the Energy Security Leadership Council (ESLC), a group of business and former military leaders committed to reducing the United States’ dependence on oil. Today, the ESLC is co-chaired by Frederick W. Smith and General James T. Conway (Ret), 34th Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps.

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