The American Truck Dealers chairman urged the Obama administration to adopt Phase 2 greenhouse gas standards that keep medium- and heavy-duty vehicle and engine technology affordable but don't compromise performance.

Eric Jorgensen testified Aug. 6 at a public hearing on the Obama administration’s Phase 2 rulemaking proposal to increase fuel economy and GHG standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, engines, and light-duty work trucks and to establish new truck trailer mandates. 

In testimony in Chicago at a joint U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration hearing, Jorgensen explained "why Phase 2 truck and engine efficiency standards must be affordable and not compromise performance, why the standards must be uniform nationwide and why doing the rule right is more important than doing it quickly."

Jorgensen is also president of JX Enterprises, Inc., a multi-state medium- and heavy-duty truck dealership group located in Hartland, Wis., which sells Peterbilt, Volvo, and Hino trucks, Kalmar Ottawa tractors, and Paccar and Cummins engines.

"Cleaner/greener new equipment will do nothing for the environment or for energy security until it is bought and placed into service, more often than not replacing older, less efficient equipment," he said. "Consequently, your goal should be to hit a regulatory sweet spot by setting performance standards that result in new products purchasers are willing and able to buy."

ATD, a division of the National Automobile Dealers Association, plans to file extensive comments addressing a variety of issues involved with the proposal beyond Jorgensen’s testimony. A second hearing is scheduled in Long Beach, Calif., on Aug. 18.