Law and legal tech, in three minutesGet the 7 a.m. briefDaily Brief PodcastMenu
1ST CIR.Litigation

Twenty-one states, DC and five cities ask First Circuit to review NHTSA fuel-economy rollback

By LexCircuit Desk · · AI-drafted, human-reviewed

Twenty-one states, the District of Columbia and five cities, including California and New York, petitioned the First Circuit on October 2, 2026, to review NHTSA's SAFE Vehicles Rule III, which sets a fleetwide average of 34.9 miles per gallon by 2031, down from 50.4 under the Biden-era rule. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the rule violates the requirement that standards be set at the maximum feasible level, Reuters reported.

Filing (California Department of Justice) → · Reuters, Courthouse News Service, Spectrum News +1

Key points

  • The petition seeks review of NHTSA's SAFE III final rule, published September 30, 2026, at 91 Fed. Reg. 61,988.California Department of Justice
  • The rule requires a fleetwide average of 34.9 mpg by model year 2031, down from 50.4 mpg under the 2024 Biden rule.ReutersSpectrum News
  • The Transportation Department estimated the rule cuts average per-vehicle compliance cost by $1,289 but raises lifetime fuel costs by more than $1,600.Reuters
  • The states said NHTSA ignored millions of electric vehicles and papered over nearly $220 billion in lost fuel savings.ReutersSource New Mexico
  • The rule ends fuel-economy credit trading among automakers in 2028; environmental and consumer groups filed a separate challenge, Reuters reported.Reuters

Sources5 articles across 5 outlets

Related

Filed under

LitigationU.S.Cal.N.Y.1st Cir.EnvironmentalLitigationRegulatoryFor practitionersFor governance