Congress Passes Cash for Clunkers

[Guest LAW_*]

Under the program, consumers may trade in their older vehicles and receive vouchers worth up to $4,500 toward the purchase or qualified lease of a new, more fuel-efficient car or truck. The program will be authorized from July 1, 2009 to November 1, 2009 with $1 billion in emergency funding.

 

The trade-in vehicles must:

• Be in drivable condition

• Be continuously insured and registered to the same owner for at least one year

• Have a combined fuel economy value of 18 mpg or less (Work trucks must be pre-2002 regardless of mpg)

• Not be more than 25 years old with historic or aesthetic value. These vehicles are valued by hobbyists or are a valuable source of restoration parts.

 

New vehicles

• The new vehicle must have a manufacturer's suggested retail price of less than $45,000

 

• Passenger Cars: The older vehicle must get 18 mpg or less. New passenger cars with mileage of at least 22 mpg are eligible for vouchers. If the mileage of the new car is at least 4 mpg higher than the old vehicle, the voucher will be worth $3,500. If the mileage of the new car is at least 10 mpg higher than the old vehicle, the voucher will be worth $4,500.

 

• Small Trucks and SUVs: The old vehicle must get 18 mpg or less. New small trucks or SUVs with mileage of at least 18 mpg are eligible for vouchers. If the mileage of the new truck or SUV is at least 2 mpg higher than the old vehicle, the voucher will be worth $3,500. If the mileage of the new truck or SUV is at least 5 mpg higher than the old vehicle, the voucher will be worth $4,500.

 

• Large Light-Duty Trucks: The old vehicle must get 18 mpg or less. New large trucks (pick-ups and vans weighing between 6,000 and 8,500 pounds) with mileage of at least 15 mpg are eligible for vouchers. If the mileage of the new truck is at least 1 mpg higher than the old truck, the voucher will be worth $3,500. If the mileage of the new truck is at least 2 mpg higher than the old truck, the voucher will be worth $4,500.

 

• Work Trucks: Under the agreement, consumers can trade in a pre-2002 work truck (defined as a pick-up truck or cargo van weighing from 8,500-10,000 pounds) and receive a voucher worth $3,500 for a new work truck in the same or smaller weight class. Only 7.5 percent of the total funds can be used for vouchers for the purchase or lease of a work truck. There are no EPA mileage measures for these trucks; however, because newer models are cleaner than older models, the age requirement ensures that the trade will improve environmental quality. Consumers can also “trade down,” receiving a $3,500 voucher for trading in an older work truck and purchasing a pick-up or van weighing between 6,000-8,500 lbs.

[Guest Green Thumb_*]

Hopefully this will get rid of many junkers out there. Chairman Waxman announced that the committee had found common ground on a proposal entitled "cash for clunkers," and the President commended the members for moving forward a plan that will help the American auto industry and provide Americans with cleaner automobiles.

 

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:H.R.520:

 

Accelerated Retirement of Inefficient Vehicles Act of 2009 - Establishes in the Department of Energy the Accelerated Retirement of Inefficient Vehicles Program.

 

Directs the Secretary of Transportation to: (1) authorize the issuance of a redeemable voucher, with limitations, to the registered owner of an eligible high fuel consumption automobile for the purchase of a new or used fuel efficient automobile upon transfer of the eligible automobile title to a participating dealer, dismantler, or scrap recycling facility; (2) allow a dealer, dismantler, or scrap recycling facility to participate in the program if they agree to scrap the eligible high fuel consumption automobile, issue a voucher to its owner, and meet all applicable requirements; (3) require dealers to accept such vouchers as partial payment for the purchase of a new or used fuel efficient automobile; and (4) make payments to dealers who accepted vouchers between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2014.

 

Authorizes the use of vouchers to acquire single-passenger transit fare credits. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations that allow operators of bus and rail public transit systems to redeem properly issued vouchers to offset the purchase price of annual transit passes or any other form of individual transit fare credit designated by the transit system operator.

[Guest LAW_*]

While participation in this voluntary program is hard to gauge given its innovative nature, ACEEE’s preliminary estimates are that 575,000 vehicles would be retired annually, and that fuel savings would reach 46,000 barrels per day by 2013. An ACEEE white paper on accelerated vehicle retirement is available at

 

http://aceee.org/transportation/Crusher%20...paper%20fin.pdf.

[Luke_Wilbur]

I understand that American cars more than 12 years old account for only 25 percent of the miles driven in the United States, yet they produce roughly 75 percent of all automobile-born pollution, including greenhouse gasses and low-level pollutants like ozone and fine particulates that wreak havoc on the lungs of urban dwellers. So, I see the Eco benifit.

 

The only problem I see is with this Cash for Clunker bill is that you can purchase foreign cars?????

 

I went to Ford Darcars and they tried to sell me a KIA. Ahem...

 

KIA is made in KOREA. Not in the USA!!!!!!

 

Under the Department of Energy the Accelerated Retirement of Inefficient Vehicles Program you can trade in for a domestic or a foreign vehicle.

 

How are we ever going to get our money back from GM or Dodge??????

 

How much money do those car companies owe us????

[Guest Senator Richard Shelby]

“The Cash-for-Clunkers program is simply another bailout to prop up a struggling industry wrapped in the political guise of an environmentally friendly program.

 

“While I agree that there are benefits to getting older, less fuel-efficient vehicles off the road, do not be fooled.

 

“That is not even what this program accomplishes.

 

“Let me explain.

 

“Under the Cash-for-Clunkers program, it does not matter how big a difference in gas mileage there is between the car you are trading in and the car you are buying.

 

“The trade-in must only meet the 18 miles per gallon requirement to be considered a clunker.

 

“After that, Madame President, environmental concerns end.

 

“As a result, under the Cash-for-Clunkers program, replacing an 18 miles per gallon vehicle with one that offers 22 miles per gallon gets a subsidy.

 

“But you do not receive any federal funds if you replace a 19 miles per gallon vehicle with one that gets 40 miles per gallon.

 

“If improving gas mileage is the goal, then a sliding scale that adjusted the subsidy with the difference in gas mileage between old and new cars would seem reasonable.

 

“Or if reducing emissions from older cars is the objective, the subsidy could be larger for trading in older vehicles.

 

“The Cash-for-Clunkers program does not do either.

 

“So, if there are no significant environmental benefits, then the goal must be to help stimulate the economy.

 

“Yet, Madame President, the program has done little to actually stimulate the economy.

 

“Many of the individuals taking advantage of the program’s subsides are not new car buyers spurred by this incentive package, but instead those who put their purchase on hold waiting for the program to launch.

 

“Madame President, simply put, these buyers would have bought the car anyway.

 

“Edumunds.com, a noted online site for car sales, stated this number could be over 100,000 car buyers.

 

“Further, Edmunds also published an analysis showing that in any given month, 60,000 to 70,000 “clunker-like” deals happen with no government program in place.

 

“Therefore, the 200,000 deals the government was originally prepared to fund through the Cash-for-Clunkers program were likely the natural “clunker” trade-in rate.

 

“This program squeezed months of normal activity into just a few days.

 

“When the backlog is met, interest in the program will fade, and the façade of economic benefit will disappear.

 

“Madame President, the Cash-for-Clunkers program is a shell game of transferring wealth from the pockets of one taxpayer to another.

 

We should call it what it really is – another billion dollar auto bailout.

[Guest Crabby]

Most Maryland auto dealers participating in "Cash for Clunkers" have yet to be reimbursed by the federal government, raising concerns about the financial pressure the program is putting on dealers.

 

Dealers essentially front the money for the cash incentive, and the government promises to reimburse them. In the first three weeks of the program, dealers submitted 358,851 reimbursement claims, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. As of last week, Maryland dealers had submitted claims for $34.4 million in reimbursements.

 

But few of those dollars have made their way back to Maryland.

 

"It's getting to the point where we can't keep sustaining this thing," said Peter Kitzmiller, president of the Maryland Automobile Dealers Association. "We can't afford to keep putting out money."

 

The regulations called for dealers to be reimbursed in seven to 10 days, Kitzmiller said. "That certainly hasn't been the case."