"EPA Defies Automakers by Keeping Efficiency Standards Intact"

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it’s keeping vehicle efficiency standards intact through the 2025 model year, shoring up a key piece of President Barack Obama’s environmental legacy against a challenge by the incoming administration.

The agency issued its determination Friday reaffirming its earlier finding that no major changes are necessary in greenhouse gas standards for cars and light-duty trucks. The move, completed just days before Obama leaves office, makes it more difficult, but not impossible, for President-elect Donald Trump’s administration to ease off on the standards.

In a statement, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said her decision to keep the standards intact was built upon eight years of research and ample opportunity for industry input. "

Ryan Beene and John Lippert report for Bloomberg January 13, 2017.