Government Launches ‘Cash-for-Clunkers’ Website

Government Launches ‘Cash-for-Clunkers’ Website
by Joshua Duval

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched the website for its ‘cash-for-clunkers’ incentive program yesterday, despite the continued uncertainty regarding how the program will be implemented.
After passing through both chambers in Congress, the cash-for-clunkers legislation was attached to a war-time spending bill and signed into law by President Barack Obama last Thursday. The government has appropriated $1 billion to the program, enough to replace about 250,000 clunkers with new vehicles.The website for the program, located at www.cars.gov, has been dubbed the “Car Allowance Rebate System.” It provides general information and links relevant to the program, but is short on specifics. A generalized flow chart of how the program will work confirms that the program will run through dealers, and implies that payments will be made directly to dealers. The diagram also says dealers will have to wait about ten days for NHTSA to approve transactions and issue the financial credit.The site also contains a link to the government’s fuel economy rating site, and a copy of the actual legislation that created the program.Analysts have been skeptical about how effective the program will be. Funding for the program was dramatically reduced, from an envisioned $4 billion (enough for about 1 million rebates) to one-fourth of that, and the current delay in finalizing the program’s details means it won’t take advantage of the typical summer buying rush. In addition, many believe the owners of cars that qualify for the program won’t be able to afford to buy new cars – even with the available $4500 rebate.