All eyes on EPA tailpipe rule

Mar 18, 2024

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By Tanya Snyder and Oriana Pawlyk

Presented by

QUICK FIX

— Here’s what automakers want to see in EPA’s final swing at vehicle emissions rules.

— The State Department is arranging a charter flight out of Haiti for U.S. citizens.

— American, Southwest and charter JSX continue to duke it out amid federal reviews.

IT’S MONDAY: You’re reading Weekly Transportation, the free Monday version of our daily Morning Transportation newsletter, your Washington policy guide to everything that moves. We’re glad you’re here. If you want, send tips, feedback and song lyrics to Tanya at tsnyder@politico.com and Oriana at opawlyk@politico.com, and follow us at @TSnyderDC and @Oriana0214.

“Hang up and drive, you're drivin' me crazy / Put down that phone, put both hands on your steerin' wheel / Hang up and drive, you're drivin' me crazy / That ain't no phone booth son, it's your automobile.”

(TAIL)PIPE DREAMS: EPA’s final vehicle emissions rule, to be released Wednesday, has been on the auto industry’s watch list since it was first proposed in April. In a memo released Friday, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation outlined what they’ll be looking for in Wednesday’s release — questions like, “Are the administration’s final EV targets ultimately achievable?”

How fast? As we’ve reported, the Biden administration has somewhat tempered its expectations for EV adoption, but no one knows what the new timeline looks like. Specifically, automakers are hoping that the administration will revert back to one laid out in a 2021 executive order that called for half of new vehicle sales to be electric by 2030 — always a “stretch goal” for the industry and not one they wanted to push even further.

Slipping on ICE: Automakers are hoping that the new rule doesn’t include targets for emissions improvements on internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, dumping resources into a technology amid being phased out instead of spending them on EV technology that’s on the rise. And they were irked by the EPA’s dismissal of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which the auto lobby thinks is a good bridge toward full electric. They’re hoping the new rule will include PHEVs as part of the solution.

And also: They’d also like to see greater alignment between the EPA rule and DOT’s CAFE standards and DOE’s petroleum equivalency factor, not to mention California’s air quality standards.

Words of wisdom: Here’s what former California Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols — hailed by some environmentalists as the most effective climate regulator ever — told your MT host last week. She said she understands the auto industry’s desire for a “softer glidepath” to electrification and said, “if we don't make it in 2030 but it's 2032 or whatever, the main issue from my perspective is getting started.”

“The art of public policy is to know how hard and fast to push, without faltering, in the direction that you're headed,” she said.

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On the Hill

REJECTED PLANS: Negotiations between the White House and House Republicans over funding for border-related matters aren’t going according to plan — and lawmakers only have until Friday to fund the rest of the government and avert a partial shutdown, our colleagues from POLITICO Playbook reported Sunday.

Republicans on Saturday rejected a Democratic offer to funnel $1.56 billion in additional funding to secure the border. Meanwhile, the White House rejected a DHS full-year continuing resolution proposal. Appropriations for DHS remains the thorniest of the six appropriations bills set to expire March 22. A source familiar with the ongoing negotiations additionally told POLITICO that the expected bill text for Homeland will likely debut sometime Monday.

A message from ASTA:

AAdvantage MEMBER? YOUR MILES MAY BE AT RISK. Starting May 1, American Airlines will deny AAdvantage miles and loyalty points for bookings made through most travel agencies to favor their “preferred” channels. If you book with a travel advisor, your points and miles could be lost. This is especially harmful to business, government, rural, and elderly travelers who depend on the services and savings that agencies provide. Congress – Don’t let American Airlines eliminate consumer choice.

Aviation

MORE EYES: The FAA on Friday announced its convening a board of experts to check over Boeing’s proposed memo issued after a LATAM Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight that took an unexpected midflight plunge last week. (Early scrutiny is focused on whether someone may have bumped the pilot’s seat controls). The board will look at procedures related to the switches on the pilot’s seats and use what they find to then provide feedback on a 2017 bulletin related to the switches and the seats, the FAA said, adding it continues to monitor the situation closely.

HAITI FLIGHTS: The U.S. State Department is arranging a charter flight out of Haiti’s Cap-Haitien airport for U.S. citizens. The government announced the initiative Saturday, as armed groups continue to descend on Port-au-Prince. The State Department said it cannot provide transport from Port-au-Prince — where the airport remains closed — or from any other areas to Cap-Haitien.

RETHINK THIS: Maryland and Virginia senators are reupping concerns about potential expansions of the beyond-perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, in a lette r to Senate Commerce Committee and House Transportation Committee leaders as both chambers try to preconference an FAA bill (S. 1939 and H.R. 3935).

A safety issue: Virginia Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine in tandem with Maryland Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen Friday said the committees need to reject the proposal going forward even after the Commerce Committee voted to approve five extra round-trip flights per day. The lawmakers, who previously voiced their opposition to the added flights, said Friday that the extra congestion at the “overburdened” airport could also jeopardize safety after a year of near-misses on runways.

JSX VS. TWO MAJOR AIRLINES: Former American Airlines CEO Doug Parker last week reignited a monthslong feud between some charters like JSX and its bigger airline competitors — notably, Southwest Airlines and American Airlines, Oriana reports. Parker appeared on the "Airlines Confidential" podcast, where he leveled his critique of JSX, saying its security protocols are a "disaster waiting to happen" because they operate under less stringent federal rules that make their flights a breeze to access.

Aside from Parker, both American and Southwest have been taking potshots at JSX for months as the government continues to look into the issue. Both the FAA and TSA have opened inquiries into whether semi-private charters like JSX should be subject to tougher regulations than they are at present. Responding to Parker’s comments, JSX told POLITICO that Parker is “unqualified to speak to the details of a security program he does not have access to" adding that his comments "speaks to the indefensible lengths he and American Airlines will go to in their efforts to eliminate competition." Oriana has more.

DON’T MISS AN IMPORTANT TALK ON ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE PRESCRIPTION DRUGS IN CA: Join POLITICO on March 19 to dive into the challenges of affordable prescription drugs accessibility across the state. While Washington continues to debate legislative action, POLITICO will explore the challenges unique to California, along with the potential pitfalls and solutions the CA Legislature must examine to address prescription drug affordability for its constituents. REGISTER HERE.

Automobiles

INSIDE THE CHARGING HABITS OF EV OWNERS: The EV charging company FLO surveyed nearly 40,000 EV drivers in the U.S. and Canada to get insights into their charging habits. They learned that 42 percent of respondents use DC Fast chargers at least once a month, generally for longer trips. But only 27 percent “mainly” use fast chargers — perhaps due to the lack of widespread availability. Nearly 30 percent of respondents didn’t have charging at home, highlighting the need for public charging infrastructure. And 51 percent said that they did other things while they charged their cars at a fast charger, like patronizing nearby stores and restaurants.

A message from ASTA:

The Autobahn

— “Lawmaker overseeing nation’s defense dumps Boeing investments amid aircraft safety crisis.” Raw Story.

— “United Airlines flight discovered to be missing external panel after landing safely in Oregon.” CNN.

— “The Great American Road Trip Is Even Better by Train.” The Wall Street Journal.

— “DOE Releases Report Outlining How America Can Sustainably Produce More Than One Billion Tons of Biomass Per Year.” DOE.

— “Hertz’s CEO to Step Down as Car Renter Unwinds Bet on EVs.” Bloomberg.

— “Self-Driving Cars Enter the Next Frontier: Freeways.” The Wall Street Journal.

— “Honda and Nissan agree to work together in developing electric vehicles and intelligent technology.” The Associated Press.

— “The Actor Who Rides the Subway to the Oscars.” The New York Times.

A message from ASTA:

AAdvantage MEMBER? YOUR MILES MAY BE AT RISK. If you book flights with a traditional travel agency, or even an online agency, you could lose your right to earn miles. American Airlines intends to stop awarding miles and loyalty points on May 1, unless you book directly with AA or through a few “preferred” channels, selected with deliberately vague and opaque criteria.

Government, business, rural, and elderly travelers are at greater risk since they are required, or prefer, to book through an agency.

AA clearly fears no regulatory or consumer response. Its new policy is being rushed despite well-documented technical issues, traveler complaints and industry objections.

Travel agencies account for the sale of over $95 billion in airline tickets. Stop AA from disenfranchising customers who book through travel agencies by telling Congress now – Don’t let American Airlines eliminate consumer choice.