EPA Loses in Trump Budget and CAFE Standards Revisited

EPA Loses in Trump Budget and CAFE Standards Revisited

Bob Larson
Bob Larson
**The "skinny budget" proposal released Thursday by the Trump administration would put the Environmental Protection Agency on a crash diet.

EPA would see its funding cut by $2.6 billion, or 31 percent, and its workforce by 3,200, or about 21 percent for the 2018 fiscal year, which begins October 1st.

Funding for more than 50 programs would be eliminated, including the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and the Chesapeake Bay program, which focus on reducing pollution from runoff and other sources in those watersheds.

**Renewable fuels groups say the Trump administration's decision to revisit fuel economy standards will give them a chance to tout the value of their low-carbon, high-octane fuel.

The groups were quick to praise President Trump's decision to reopen EPA's midterm evaluation of the CAFÉ standards for cars and light-duty trucks for model years 2022-2025.

Just a week before Trump was sworn in, then-EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy completed the evaluation 18 months ahead of schedule, requiring "the equivalent of 54.5 mpg for cars and light-duty trucks by 2025.

New EPA Administrator, Scott Pruitt, feels the standards may be unrealistic.

**Farm groups are appealing to congressional budget writers to provide an increase in farm bill spending to help producers cope with the downturn in commodity prices.

Unless more money is found for the new farm bill, the Senate and House Agriculture committees will have to write the legislation based on the cost of extending existing programs. The groups do not propose a specific amount that spending should be increased.

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