Connecticut residents could be forced to make more trips to the gas station and deal with more air pollution. The Trump administration is proposing a rollback of fuel economy standards that would make new motor vehicles less fuel efficient.
The Biden era rule requires a fuel efficiency increase by 2% every year for motor vehicles produced between 2027 and 2031. The proposed rollback would lower that rate to half a percentage.
Governor Ned Lamont criticized the move by the Trump administration, saying it would mean more trips to the gas station for Connecticut drivers.
“At a time when American consumers are already struggling with high costs, this action by the federal administration will hit consumers in the wallet, resulting in cars that are less fuel efficient and more trips to the gas station,” Lamont said in a statement.
Federal fuel economy standards have saved households an average of $630 to $840 a year, according to Department of Energy and Environmental Protection commissioner Katie Dykes.
“In addition to increasing expenses on gas, the roll back will have other harmful impacts, including increased air pollution,” Dykes said in a statement.
More than 2.7 million vehicles are registered in Connecticut with cars and trucks accounting for almost 70% of the state’s smog-forming emissions and almost 35% of its climate pollution.
Air quality in Connecticut exceeded federal health-based standards for ozone, the main component of smog, on 23 days in 2024 and 22 days this year.
Dr. Richard Hill, a pulmonologist in Waterbury and chair of the American Lung Association board of directors, said a rollback will cause more people to develop asthma.
“We'll see more people with chronic lung disease who go to the emergency room in the hospital and we'll see more people that die. We need to do whatever we can to decrease air pollution. This is a step in the wrong direction,” Hill said.
“These changes that, percentage-wise, seem small are a tremendous amount of pollutants and anything we can do to foster a transition to clean fuel cars quicker is going to be best for the environment and for public health,” Hill said.
The proposed rule is open for public comment until mid-January.
Áine Pennello is a Report for America corps member, covering the environment and climate change for Connecticut Public
