Congress will kill car-discount plan

Press, 10 June 1977, Page 5

Congress will kill car-discount plan

NZPA-Reuter Washington. President Carter’s plan to 1 'give buyers of small cars 1 [cash discounts ‘as a way to, 1 save energy’ is heading fori [the scrapheap, according to { 'key United States Congress-]] imen. ] The powerful House of 1 Representatives Ways and ' Means Committee plans to ' ;vote to kill the tax rebates ' ifor small cars, and drasti- 1 Ically change Mr Carter’s' 'proposal for a big tax on '[large cars, committee mem- ' 'bers have said. ' The committee yesterday [debated the proposals all ' ‘day, members opposing the [rebate, which would apply; only to American and Cana- ; idian cars. The rebates, ranging from 'sso to about $5OO, would;

apply to foreign-made cars [ under the Carter proposals: only after country-by-coun-. try negotiations. Members of the committee, .including Representative Charles Vanik, who heads its trade sub-com-mittee, said the plan was unworkable and would violate international trade rulesby discriminating against [ foreign cars. The committee’s chairman, Mr All Ullman, acknowledged in an interview that; the rebate plan would be! killed, and the proposed big-' car tax drastically changed. He said that the com-1 mittee would probably vote 'to postpone the date — President Carter proposed beginning next year — of] ! the tax by one or two years. I