Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy Testifies before U.S. House Committee
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy testified before the U.S. House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee in mid July as part of the committee's departmental oversight responsibilities. During the hearing, Secretary Duffy discussed a wide range of topics, including electric vehicles (EV), autonomous vehicles (AV), and other areas of importance to the independent auto repair community.
Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) argued that the Biden Administration used Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards as a backdoor means of implementing an EV mandate. He asked Secretary Duffy about the status of the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) efforts to reverse those CAFE standards. Duffy replied that his team is currently working on fixing those rules.
Later in the hearing, Congressman Tim Burchett (R-TN) shared his concerns that AV's could be leveraged in a manner that curbs people's individual liberties. Secretary Duffy agreed that the regulatory approach to AVs must protect individual freedom without unduly restricting innovation.
Congressman Vince Fong (R-CA) seemed to push Secretary Duffy to prioritize innovation and the potential safety benefits of AV technology in his balancing act. Secretary Duffy explained that his vision for AV regulations includes obtaining data from AV companies so the DOT can better understand AVs, which would allow his agency to make informed rules. He also wants one federal standard that eliminates the current 50-state regulatory patchwork.