The oil refinery lobbying group American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) drafted a joint Governors’ letter “vigorously” supporting the Trump Administration's proposed rule that would rollback Obama-era Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards and asked for signatures from the Governors of Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas.
The email correspondence, obtained by Documented through a public records request made to the Mississippi Governor’s office, provide a behind-the-scenes look into AFPM’s efforts to gain support for the Trump Administration's proposed fuel economy rule from Republican Governors.
AFPM sent the letter to the Mississippi Governor’s Chief Legal Counsel Whitney Lipscomb in September 2018.
Documented previously reported that AFPM, with the help of the Republican Governors Association and their policy arm Republican Governors Public Policy Committee, circulated a subsequent joint Governors’ letter to Lipscomb and several other offices in October 2018. Governors from Texas, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota and Oklahoma ultimately signed that letter and it was published in the federal register. Documented also revealed that AFPM had “been shopping around op-ed” to Republican Governors in Wyoming and Nebraska, which would have also showed support for the rule.
The message obtained by Documented is highlighted in a new report from DeSmog about the latest efforts of the Trump Administration’s efforts to rollback fuel Obama-era standards.
Below is the email correspondence obtained by Documented: