WASHINGTON, DC - Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA) today sent two letters to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy in connection with the Partial Consent Decree in the case of Volkswagen “Clean Diesel" Marketing, Sales Practices, and Products Liability Litigation.
In the first letter to Administrator McCarthy, the leaders seek additional information concerning the implemenation of the requirement that Volkswagen make $2 billion in Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) investments over a ten-year period. Upton and Murphy expressed concerns with the tight deadline under the ZEV investment plan and EPA’s role, stating, “These tight deadlines are concerning as there remain a number of unanswered questions about the ZEV Investment Commitment and the EPA’s role in overseeing the investment. These questions implicate the competitiveness of the electric vehicle industry, EPA management and authorities, and the public interest."
Upton and Murphy continued, “For example, under the structure of the ZEV Investment Commitment, VW may be able to obtain substantial competitive benefits, if not a monopoly on electric vehicle infrastructure, under the required investments. … It appears that, just as the company plans to enter the EV market, it will be consenting to a court-required $2 billion investment - potentially into its own infrastructure and to support its own newly entered market. This is a curious outcome for the settlement of a cheating scandal."
The members requested further information from EPA, writing, “We seek your assistance in clarifying this situation. We seek to understand the mechanisms of the ZEV Investment Commitment and whether and how the process will protect the integrity and competitiveness of the existing ZEV marketplace. Moreover, it is not clear what EPA’s role will be regarding management and oversight of the investment process."
In the second letter to EPA Administrator McCarthy, Upton and Murphy renewed a committee request for EPA’s assessments concerning the excess emissions from Volkswagen’s cheating. The members write, “The Environmental Protection Agency presumably calculated this figure to include the amount of excess NOx emissions from non-compliant vehicles operated in the past, as well as the future potential emissions of this class of vehicles. … The committee asked EPA to provide a detailed explanation or description of any assessment EPA has conducted to evaluate the real-world effect of these emissions. EPA declined at the time due to the ongoing investigation."
See Also
* Letters to EPA Administrator McCarthy Regarding VW Partial Consent Decree
* RESCHEDULED: #SubOversight to Examine EPA’s Role in VW Settlement Implementation NEXT WEEK
