New York recently became the third state this year after Connecticut and Hawaii to introduce legislation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide. The bill provides that the regulations must be consistent with California’s laws and regulations and will apply to 2009 model year and later vehicles.
The new California law prohibits regulators from reducing speed limits, restricting vehicle size or imposing new taxes or fees. Many believe that this law is a back-door effort by environmentalists to set fuel-economy standards, an authority the law’s opponents state is exclusively reserved to the federal government.
Because CO2 is given off whenever gasoline is burned, the only way to cut emissions is to make vehicles that burn less gasoline, or have vehicles driven by electricity or other means. This may potentially restrict sales of SUVs and light trucks, and products that increase vehicle performance at the expense of fuel economy.
