SECTION 4. MEANING OF TERMS

The following definitions apply for purposes of this notice:

(1) Passenger Automobile and Light Truck . Section 30B provides that the terms “passenger automobile” and “light truck” have the meaning given in regulations prescribed by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency for purposes of the administration of Title II of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7521 et seq. ). Those regulations currently do not include a definition of these terms, but § 30B(b)(2)(B) provides the 2002 model year city fuel economy tables that must be used to determine the amount of the credit for passenger automobiles and light trucks. Those tables do not prescribe the fuel economy for vehicles having a gross vehicle weight of more than 8,500 pounds.

Mailing Address USEPA Headquarters Ariel Rios Building 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Mail Code: 6401A Washington, DC 20460

Courier Address USEPA Headquarters Ariel Rios Building 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Room 6502A Washington, DC 20004

March 24, 2008 643 2008–12 I.R.B.

(2) Passenger Automobiles and Light Trucks . If the vehicle is a passenger automobile or light truck, the certification must include a copy of the certificate (received on or after August 8, 2005) that the vehicle meets or exceeds the applicable Bin 5 Tier II emission standard established in regulations prescribed by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under § 202(i) of the Clean Air Act for that make and model year vehicle.

(3) Additional Fuel Economy Credit. If the manufacturer (or, in the case of a foreign manufacturer, its domestic distributor) is certifying that a passenger automobile or light truck is eligible for the additional fuel economy credit allowable under § 30B(b)(2), the certification must also contain the following information:

(a) The vehicle inertia weight class of the vehicle; and

(b) The city fuel economy of the vehicle.

.04 Acknowledgment of Certification . The Service will review the original signed certification and issue an acknowledgment letter to the vehicle manufacturer (or, in the case of a foreign vehicle manufacturer, its domestic distributor) within 30 days of receipt of the request for certification. This acknowledgment letter will state whether purchasers may rely on the certification.

.05 Effect of Erroneous Certification. The acknowledgment that the Service provides for a certification is not a determination that a vehicle qualifies for the credit, or that the amount of the credit is correct. The Service may, upon examination (and after any appropriate consultation with the Department of Transportation or the Environmental Protection Agency), determine that the vehicle is not a new qualified fuel cell motor vehicle or that the amount of the credit determined by the manufacturer (or, in the case of a foreign vehicle manufacturer, its domestic distributor) to be allowable with respect to the vehicle is incorrect. In either event, the manufacturer’s (or, in the case of a foreign vehicle manufacturer, its domestic distributor’s) right to provide a certification to future purchasers of new fuel cell motor vehicles will be withdrawn, and purchasers who acquire a vehicle after the date on which the Service publishes an announcement of the withdrawal may not rely on the certification. Purchasers may continue to rely on the certification for vehicles they acquired on or before the date

(4) Vehicle Inertia Weight Class . The term “vehicle inertia weight class” means, with respect to a motor vehicle, its inertia weight class determined under 40 CFR § 86.129–94. Under 40 CFR § 86.082–2, the inertia weight class is the class (a group of test weights) into which a vehicle is grouped based on its loaded vehicle weight in accordance with the provisions of 40 CFR part 86.