OIL PRICE ADJUSTMENT FAILS TO FORCE INCREASE IN NEW FUEL ECONOMY RULE

The Bush administration's March 29 rule setting new corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for light trucks and sport-utility vehicles (SUVs) maintains standards close to what was outlined in a proposal last year even though the rule takes into account higher oil prices that environmentalists and other observers have cited to argue for stricter standards. Instead, the rule justifies maintaining the proposed standards by assuming that higher gas prices will cause people to drive fewer miles. Language in the rule...