Obama’s New Fuel Economy Standards Model California’s

President Obama announced stricter national standards for fuel efficiency and emissions last Tuesday. His proposal would require both domestic and foreign automakers to increase the fleet fuel efficiency of vehicles sold in America by 5 percent per year from 2012 to 2016. After 2016, the fleet fuel efficiency for all passenger cars will be 39 mpg and 30 mpg for light trucks and SUVs, four years earlier than under 2007 legislation.

The standards are expected to add $1,300 on average to vehicle costs, but Obama said drivers would make that back within three years due to savings on gas. Administration officials say the program will have the effect of removing 900 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the air or the equivalent of shutting down 194 coal-fired power plants.

The proposal is based largely on tailpipe emission requirements proposed by California. The state was recently granted a waiver by the EPA which would allow the state to enforce requirements stricter than nation-wide standards, but Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger decided to forgo the state program in light of the national program modeled on California's. Read more on Fox News