The Methodology of Passenger Automobile Fuel Economy Rulemaking - Part II -Economics

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act requires that both technical feasibility and economic practicability be considered in establishing fuel economy standards for new motor vehicles. Economic efficiency considerations and the social welfare implications associated with fuel economy standard setting require that such technical and economic considerations be simultaneously evaluated. A method of performing this joint analysis is through the use of the principles of Social Welfare Theory combined with the computational method of Linear Programming. The result of the analysis provides estimates of fuel economy standards which are both technologically, economically, and socially efficient.