The Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA), the trade association that represents motor vehicle parts suppliers, is urging Congress to pass legislation that would aid the industry's transition to more fuel-efficient technologies.

Specifically, MEMA asked Congress to provide funding that would help carmakers and parts suppliers retool their facilities, purchase new equipment and expand or build new facilities to meet the demand for more fuelefficient vehicles. MEMA also called for funding for advanced battery technology to help speed the development of plug-in hybrids and pure plug-in vehicles.

"The entire industry is transitioning to more efficient vehicles and more fuel-saving technologies," said MEMA president and CEO Bob McKenna. MEMA hopes that Congress "will encourage this transition by providing the necessary funding to assist the hundreds of companies, big and small, that are working to get this job done."

McKenna said suppliers have long supported funding for both the retooling of facilities and advanced battery development, provisions that were authorized in the energy bill that was signed into law last December. "Nows the time for Congress to nail the numbers down," he said.

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