Washington, D.C. – Ahead of tomorrow’s planned auto industry meeting with President Donald Trump, environmental leaders urged carmakers to side with Americans who want cleaner, more fuel efficient vehicles by opposing the administration’s plans to roll back the Clean Car Standards.

“When you meet with President Trump on Friday, we ask that you stand with the majority of Americans who want cleaner, more fuel efficient cars and cleaner air. We ask that you oppose any rollback of the fuel economy and climate pollution standards and support working in concert with California’s clean cars program,” reads the letter, which was signed by leaders of the League of Conservation Voters, Environmental Defense Fund, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, and the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Major carmakers are slated to attend the White House meeting tomorrow. The Clean Car Standards are overwhelmingly popular, will reduce climate pollution by 6 billion tons, and will save Americans more than $1 trillion at the gas pump.

“These standards are working exactly as they were designed to do – they are protecting our health and climate, driving innovation, saving Americans money at the gas pump, and reducing our reliance on oil. And you have been meeting these standards while enjoying record profits. They are truly a win-win,” the environmental leaders say in the letter.

The full letter can be found HERE and below:

 

Mrs. Mary T. Barra

Chairman and CEO

General Motors Company

 

Mr. Sergio Marchionne

Chairman and CEO

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US

 

Mr. James P. Hackett

President and CEO

Ford Motor Company

 

Mr. Toshiaki Mikoshiba

President and CEO

American Honda Motor Co.

 

Mr. James Lentz

CEO

Toyota Motor Sales, USA

 

Mr. Anders Gustafsson

Senior Vice President, Americas

Volvo Car Group

 

Mr. Fred Diaz

President and CEO

Mitsubishi Motors North America

 

Mr. Bernhard Kuhnt

CEO

BMW of North America

 

Mr. Thomas J. Doll

President and COO

Subaru of America

 

Mr. Hinrich J. Woebcken

President and CEO

Volkswagen Group of America

 

Mr. Dietmar Exler

President and CEO

Mercedes-Benz USA

 

Mr. Masahiro Moro

President and CEO

Mazda North American Operations

 

Dr. Ralf Speth

CEO

Jaguar Land Rover North America

 

Mr. Denis Le Vot

Chairman and Senior Vice President

Nissan North America

 

Mr. Kyung Soo Lee

President and CEO

Hyundai Motor America

 

Mr. SeungKyu (Sean) Yoon

President and CEO

Kia Motors America

 

Dear Auto Executives,

 

On behalf of our over 10 million members and supporters, who are your customers, we strongly oppose any rollback of the fuel economy and climate pollution standards or any attack on state authority to address tailpipe pollution. These standards are working exactly as they were designed to do – they are protecting our health and climate, driving innovation, saving Americans money at the gas pump, and reducing our reliance on oil. And you have been meeting these standards while enjoying record profits. They are truly a win-win.

Curbing pollution from the transportation sector could not be more important in our fight against climate change, as this sector is now America’s largest source of climate pollution. The fuel economy and climate pollution standards would save nearly 2.5 million barrels of oil a day by 2030, save Americans $1 trillion, and reduce climate change pollution by 6 billion metric tons.

What’s more, rolling back the fuel economy and climate pollution standards is out of step with the vast majority of the people in this country who are your consumers. Recent polling shows strong support for the existing standards. And 87 percent of Americans — across party lines — want automakers to continue to improve fuel economy.

When you meet with President Trump on Friday, we ask that you stand with the majority of Americans who want cleaner, more fuel efficient cars and cleaner air. We ask that you oppose any rollback of the fuel economy and climate pollution standards and support working in concert with California’s clean cars program.

 

Sincerely,

Gene Karpinski

President

League of Conservation Voters

 

Fred Krupp

President

Environmental Defense Fund

 

Rhea Suh

President

Natural Resources Defense Council

 

Michael Brune

Executive Director

Sierra Club

 

Ken Kimmell

President

Union of Concerned Scientists