Lawmakers urge OMB to finalize repeal of emissions standards for gliders

A group of 24 lawmakers – 21 members of the House and three senators – are urging the director of the Office of Management and Budget to move forward quickly with the Environmental Protection Agency’s final rule to repeal emissions standards on glider kits.

The lawmakers – including Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla.; Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn.; Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa; Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas; and 20 others – sent a letter last week to OMB Director Mick Mulvaney.

“We are writing to you regarding the rule titled ‘Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles Phase 2’ that apples to glider vehicles, glider engines and glider kits,” the letter stated. “As members of Congress who represent manufacturers and/or users of glider kits, we urge the Office of Management and Budget to waive the regulatory impact analysis on this rule.”

In November, the EPA proposed a rule to repeal emissions requirements for glider vehicles, glider engines and glider kits. The EPA said the proposal was based on an interpretation of the Clean Air Act under which “glider kits would not be treated as incomplete new motor vehicles.” Under the proposed interpretation, EPA would lack the authority to regulate the gliders.

Simply put, the EPA said that gliders aren’t new trucks and that they shouldn’t be regulated like new trucks.

According to a 2018 spring regulatory report released earlier this month, the rule could be finalized as soon as May.

However, the month is set to close with no final rule in place. The lawmakers said the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs informed EPA that it needs a regulatory impact analysis before the final rule can take effect.

“It is our understanding the EPA does not need to conduct an RIA for deregulatory issues and taking such a step would delay this deregulatory action unnecessarily,” the letter stated.

“(Gliders) are an affordable option for many small businesses. According to Fitzgerald Glider Kits, eliminating this choice may adversely impact the U.S. economy by $1 billion and jeopardize 22,000 jobs. Again, we urge the OMB to waive the RIA and support the EPA’s final rule concerning glider vehicles, engines and kits with an immediate effective date.”

The rule has received opposition from environmentalist groups.

To see the entire letter and all of the lawmakers who signed it, go here.