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When deciding on acquisitions or on investments, there is a basic term: to delay a decision or action is to “move it to the right” and to accelerate something is to “move it to the left”.

Tomorrow, the Obama Administration will formerly announce a decision to “move to the left” auto efficiency standards to help get more efficient automobiles as the norm that much faster.

From a background teleconference earlier this evening with the White House the opening by a “Senior Administration Official”:

Tomorrow the administration is proposing tough new fuel economy standards and the first ever greenhouse gas pollution standards for cars. The program will begin in model year 2012. By 2016 the fleet average will be 35.5 miles per gallon, that is four years earlier than the CAFE law requires. The CAFE law required a 35 miles per gallon in model year 2020.

One of the myriad of W Administration bucking of law and legal processes was the abusive handling of California vs EPA, as California sought a “waiver” to require more fuel efficient vehicles than planned under the CAFE standards.

Tomorrow’s announcement is a deal that incorporates most of the California desired standard into a national plan. Thus, rather than 14 states, we’re taking 50 States, DC, and the territories. What is the new target?

In 2016 it’s 39 miles per gallon for cars and 30 miles per gallon for trucks. Today it is 27.5 miles per gallon for cars and 23.1 miles per gallon for trucks.

This means that the average car will have to get 39 mpg and the average McSUV 30 mpg.

Enough in the face of Peak Oil and Climate Change? Perhaps not, but a serious step forward.

What is the estimated impact?

This is an average 5 percent year in increased fuel efficiency. In model year ’09, the current model year, the average fuel efficiency is 25 miles per gallon. More efficient cars mean savings to consumers at the pump. The projected oil savings of this program over the life of this program is 1.8 billion barrels of oil. The program is also projected to achieve reductions of 900 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions under the life of the program. That is equivalent to taking 177 million cars off the road or shutting down 194 coal plants.

From the Sierra Club‘s Executive Director, Carl Pope:

“President Obama is putting the pedal to the floor when it comes to slashing our dependence on oil and confronting global warming. Last month the administration closed the books on the Bush era of climate denial once and for all by acknowledging the threat of global warming, and now today they moving forward with a plan that will give new life to the American auto industry and ensure that the next generation of clean, efficient autos will be made right here in the U.S.A

Do we really want the “pedal to the floor” analogy? After all, basic fuel efficient (and safe) driving: gradual acceleration, people, gradual!

Also, praising the Obama Administration for “acknowledging the treat of global warming” last month? Hmm … I seem to remember a President Obama mentioning it in a speech just moments after having finished the Oath of Office.

“Today’s announcement is one of the most significant efforts undertaken by any president, ever, to end our addiction to oil and seriously slash our global warming emissions. The speed with which the Obama administration is moving to build the clean energy economy has been breathtaking. President Obama clearly sees the big picture when comes to rebuilding our economy, making the clean energy future a reality, and fighting global warming. “

We face an interesting challenge … and opportunity. Would we (the United States and all humanity) be better off if the Obama Administration used existing regulatory authorities for moving forward on many energy and climate issues, rather than getting caught in the (rotten) sausage factory of the Congressional process. If there is authority, already, to act, why take us on a path toward weaker action?

There are some (lawyers) who argue that the EPA already has full authority to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. Yet, the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy & Security (ACES) Act strips that authority from EPA. Is that really the best path forward?