U.S. Legislative Updates

Legislation Would Extend Ethanol and Biodiesel Tax Credits, Require Production of Hybrids

U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tim Johnson (D-SD) have introduced legislation that focuses on developing and deploying domestically grown and produced energy. The Securing America's Future with Energy and Sustainable Technologies (SAFEST) Act would, among other things, extend tax credits for ethanol and biodiesel and require by 2030 that 30 percent of the light-duty vehicles produced by domestic auto manufacturers be hybrid vehicles able to run on ethanol blends, biodiesel, or hydrogen fuel cells.

IRS Sets Personal Use Limits

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a revenue procedure (Revenue Procedure 2011-11) which provides: (1) the maximum value of employer-provided vehicles first made available to employees for personal use in calendar year 2011 for which the vehicle cents-per-mile valuation rule for computing personal use is $15,300 for a passenger automobile and $16,200 for a truck or van; (2) the maximum value of employer-provided vehicles first made available to employees for personal use in calendar year 2011 for which the fleet-average valuation rule may be applicable is $20,300 for a passenger automobile and $21,200 for a truck or van.

U.S. DOT Holds Public Hearing on Proposed Rear-Visibility Rule

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently held a public hearing to hear comments on government proposals on safety measures to help eliminate blind zones behind vehicles that can hide the presence of pedestrians, especially young children and the elderly.

In December, the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed a rearview visibility safety regulation to reduce back-over fatalities and injuries. The proposed rule was required by Congress as part of the Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act of 2007. Two-year-old Cameron Gulbransen, for whom the Act is named, was killed when his father accidentally backed over him in the family's driveway.

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