The Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced joint regulations that increase Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards and create the first-ever federal standard to cut greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks. According to the two agencies, the new standards will help increase fuel economy by about 5 percent every year.

These standards follow through on Obama's announcement in May calling for an increase in CAFE standards from 27.5 mpg to 35.5 mpg by 2016.

The Obama administration announced that it is increasing the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards by 40 percent for vehicles beginning with 2011 models, from 27.5 miles per gallon to at least 35 mpg. Obama called the change "a down payment on a broader and sustained effort to reduce our dependence on foreign oil."