Finding CAFE Religion, Too Late

According to Forbes, it seems that Baron Hill has decided that he is in favor of raising CAFE standards:

Reps. Baron Hill, D-Ind., and Lee Terry, R-Neb., last week proposed increasing the so-called CAFE standards to up to 35 mpg by 2022 - or a minimum of 32 mpg - for cars and trucks.

His press releases mirror this effort.

CAFE standards are fuel economy standards (in miles per gallon) that the government requires new cars to meet.

The higher the CAFE standard, the less gasoline a new car uses, the less its owner has to pay for gas, and the less oil we have to import from unfriendly people in the Middle East.

Mr. Hill made much in the last campaign about his opponent being responsible for high gas prices.

Such allegations were never supported by any actual examination of fuel price histories (though nobody in the media in the 9th District ever bothered to actually check).

According to the Department of Energy (Excel file warning), the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the Midwest was $0.88 when Baron Hill entered office in January of 1999.

When he was voted out, in early November of 2004, gasoline cost $1.97 a gallon, a net increase of 124%.

When he returned to office, in January of 2007, gasoline cost $2.26 a gallon.

That means that, for the time Mike Sodrel was in office, from November of 2004 to January of 2007, gasoline prices went up all of 14% or so.

Today, gasoline is averaging $3.05 around New Albany, an increase of 35% just since Baron Hill returned to office.

And that is with prices having gone down since their peaks during the spring!

In all, gasoline prices went up $0.29 while Sodrel was in office, about 14%.

While Baron Hill was in office overall, however, gasoline prices have seen a net increase of $1.88.

That is a net increase of 213%.

It is also over six times, 648% to be exact, of the increase seen while Sodrel was in office, despite Hill attacking Sodrel for being in the pocket of the big oil companies.

In the seven months since Baron took office again, gas prices have seen an increase two and a half times the size that seen while Sodrel was in Congress.

Baron Hill, it seems, is good for the oil companies.

Moreover, when he was in Congress the first go around, Baron Hill had plenty of opportunities to increase the CAFE standards.

He voted against such increases as early as 2001.

Such standards have to be implemented gradually, and it takes many years for the effects of such CAFE improvements to be seen.

It is all well and good for Baron Hill to have found religion about CAFE standards now.

But if he had supported them in 2001, those increased standards would already be helping to drive the prices of gasoline down and reduce the amount of gas you would be needing in newer cars.

And, in case you noticed from the Forbes article at the top of this post, Baron's effort to increase CAFE standards is actually weaker than that being proposed by others, and much weaker than that which was passed by the Senate.

Gas prices soar while Baron Hill is in office, and he opposes efforts for us to use less gasoline in our cars.

He even has gone so far as to weaken new efforts to improve CAFE standards.

My wallet is not thanking you, Mr. Hill.