MEMA Testifies Before Congressional Committee on Energy and Environment Regarding SAFE Program

On June 20, 2019, Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) member Ramzi Hermiz, President and CEO of Shiloh Industries, Inc., and Chairman of the Board of the Original Equipment Suppliers Association, testified jointly on behalf of Shiloh and MEMA before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce and Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change during a hearing on the Trump administration’s Safe Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles proposal.

The proposed SAFE Vehicles rule that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released for public comment in August 2018 proposes to keep the existing emissions standards in place through model year 2020 followed by zero percent improvement in model years 2021-2026.

Shiloh and MEMA support continuous improvement in both Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards and light duty vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards. The joint testimony stated that continuous improvement in these standards along with achieving the goals set forth in the One National Program will preserve long-term supplier investments and employment, provide clarity for suppliers to continue to invest in the U.S., and ensure that the U.S. remains a global mobility technological leader, ultimately benefitting our environment.

“Shiloh and MEMA support continued year-over-year improvement to the CAFE standards and the GHG vehicle emissions standards for passenger cars and light trucks. This improvement will continue to drive technology development, commercialization and manufacturing in the U.S. and help the U.S. auto industry remain competitive in the global marketplace,” the written testimony stated. “Further, if current standards are relaxed in the U.S., the emission performance gap created by the revised standards may impede vehicles manufactured to the lower standards from being exported and used in the large markets of Europe and Asia directly impacting volumes manufactured in the U.S. This gap would also provide a strong incentive for suppliers to pursue business opportunities in Europe or Asia where these technologies would be utilized, resulting in investment in people and development to occur in other markets, potentially to the detriment of investment in the U.S.”

“To summarize my testimony in one sentence, I would say that I am here today to support U.S. jobs and our nation’s technological leadership, with the added benefit of a healthier environment,” Hermiz testified. “In this particular case, the motor vehicle supplier sector requires long-term investments in facilities and employees, so certainty is paramount. Shiloh and MEMA see a great opportunity for the U.S. to provide this certainty through regulatory leadership in pursuit of continued innovation and the long-term health and competitiveness of the industry.”

The full written testimony is available on the MEMA website.