WASHINGTON — The Trump administration finalized sweeping new fuel-economy standards on September 28, resetting Corporate Average Fuel Economy targets for model years 2022 through 2031 in what amounts to the biggest rollback of U.S. vehicle efficiency policy in decades.
Under the final rule from the Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the fleetwide average target for 2031 will be roughly 35 miles per gallon — up from 30.1 mpg in model year 2024 but far below the 50.4 mpg projected under Biden-era rules. Reuters and the Wall Street Journal reported slightly different figures, 34.9 and 34.5 mpg respectively.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the rollback ends an “illegal mandate that forced automakers to produce more expensive electric vehicles that American families didn’t want,” crediting President Donald Trump’s leadership. The administration projects the rule will cut the average new-vehicle price by about $1,300 and save consumers $138 billion over five years — a projection critics dispute.
The rule also eliminates CAFE credit trading beginning with the 2028 model year, ending a system under which EV makers such as Tesla sold credits to other automakers, and revises vehicle classifications from 2030.
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the automakers’ trade group, called the change an “appropriate course correction.” Senator Edward Markey and environmental groups condemned it as an attack on fuel savings for drivers.
The rollout came the same day AAA reported the national average gasoline price at about $4.47 a gallon — up from $4.08 a month earlier and $3.13 a year ago — as the U.S.–Iran oil-price surge ripples through the economy.