Washington — President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is coming under fire from Republican members of a Senate panel responsible for approving her nomination.
Ann Carlson has been the acting administrator for the vehicle regulating agency since September, when former administrator Steven Cliff stepped down, and has been its top attorney since January 2021. Sustained GOP opposition could endanger her chances of approval in the Senate.
In a Monday letter led by Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, the 13 Republican members of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee decried recent regulations by the Environmental Protection Agency that will push automakers to dramatically reduce vehicle emissions.
EPA estimated the standards released last month would push automakers to sell more than two-thirds electric vehicles by 2032. Last year, EVs represented 5.8% of U.S. sales, according to AutoForecast Solutions LLC, which is expected to climb to nearly 9% this year.
“Your work at NHTSA and past career suggest NHTSA intends to mimic the EPA’s draconian EV mandate,” the senators wrote in a letter addressed to Carlson. “A de facto EV mandate from NHTSA would not only be contrary to law, it would limit consumers’ vehicle choices and impose higher costs on American families at a time of crushing inflation.”
They cited NHTSA’s move last year to increase fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light-duty trucks for Model Years 2024 to 2026, which were nearly a 43% increase from the Trump-era standards. The agency also increased fines for automakers that didn’t meet standards.
NHTSA is expected to propose new fuel economy standards soon for model years 2027 and beyond, though spokespeople for NHTSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter or on when new rules may be expected. Transportation remains the largest contributor of greenhouse gases in the United States.
The senators argued that the shift to electric vehicles will burden lower- and middle-income people by reducing the supply of gas-powered cars and hurt national security by incentivizing a product that has a supply chain dominated by China.
EPA’s new emissions standards go beyond the Biden administration’s goal of half of all new car sales being electric by 2030. The rules were met with skepticism by automakers: Alliance for Automotive Innovation CEO John Bozzella called the 50% goal “a stretch goal” to begin with.
Automakers are already pouring billions into transitioning to produce electric vehicles, pushed in part by regulatory constraints in Europe and Asia and the threat of climate change, and now aided by billions in federal subsidies passed through the Inflation Reduction Act last year. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said last month that market trends, including consumer demand, indicate that the two-thirds goal is achievable.
Carlson’s nomination is referred to the Senate’s Commerce committee, which will vet her and report the nomination to the full Senate. The report can include a recommendation to approve, to not approve, or with no recommendation.
The Senate is controlled by Democrats, but extremely narrow margins have allowed Republicans to exert some control over nominations by winning over centrist members.
Biden’s picks to lead the Federal Communications Commission, Gigi Sohn, and the Federal Aviation Administration, Phillip Washington, both withdrew from consideration last month after Republicans on the Commerce committee mounted an offensive against them and it wasn’t clear they would succeed in the full Senate.
Before joining NHTSA, Carlson was a professor of environmental law at UCLA, according to the agency, and served on a California panel evaluating performance of the state’s cap-and-trade program and other climate policy.
rbeggin@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @rbeggin