By ALEXA ST. JOHN

DETROIT (AP) — President Donald Trump this week announced plans to weaken rules for how far automakers’ new vehicles need to travel on a gallon of gasoline, set under former President Joe Biden.

The Trump administration said the rules, known formally as Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards, are why new vehicles are too expensive, and that cutting them will drive down costs and make driving safer for Americans.

The new standards would drop the industry fleetwide average for light-duty vehicles to roughly 34.5 mpg in the 2031 model year, down from the goal of about 50.4 mpg that year under the Biden-era rule.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event on fuel economy standards in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Here are the facts.

Affordability

TRUMP: EV-friendly policies “forced automakers to build cars using expensive technologies that drove up costs, drove up prices and made the car much worse.”

THE FACTS: It’s true that gas mileage standards have played a role in rising vehicle prices in recent years, but experts say plenty of other factors have contributed, and some much more.

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Pandemic-era inventory shortages, supply chain challenges, tariffs and other trade dynamics, and even automakers’ growing investments in their businesses have also sent prices soaring. Average prices have also skewed higher as automakers have leaned into the costly big pickups and SUVs that many American consumers love.

The average transaction price of a new vehicle hit $49,105 in October, according to car shopping guide Edmunds.

A Consumer Reports analysis of vehicles for model years 2003 to 2021 — a period in which average fuel economy improved 30% — found no significant increase in inflation-adjusted vehicle prices caused by the requirements. At the same time, it found an average of $7,000 in lifetime fuel savings per vehicle for 2021 model year vehicles compared with 2003. That analysis, done primarily before the coronavirus pandemic, attributed much of the average sticker price increase to the shift toward bigger and more expensive vehicles.

Cutting the fuel economy standards is unlikely to provide any fast relief on sticker prices, said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ head of insights. And while looser standards may eventually mean lower car prices, their lower efficiency means that those savings could be eaten up by higher fuel costs, she said.

Ending the gas car?

TRUMP: Biden’s policies were “a quest to end the gasoline-powered car.”

THE FACTS: The Biden administration did enact several policies to increase electric vehicle adoption, including setting a target for half of new vehicle sales in the U.S. to be electric by 2030.

The Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act included tax incentives that gave car buyers up to $7,500 off the price of an EV and dedicated billions of dollars to nationwide charging — funding that Trump tried to stop. The Biden administration increased fuel economy requirements and set stricter tailpipe emissions limits.

While those moves sought to help build the EV market, there was no requirement that automakers sell EVs or consumers buy them. And gasoline cars still make up the vast majority of the U.S. market.

EV charging

TRUMP: “We had to have an electric car within a very short period of time, even though there was no way of charging them.”

THE FACTS: While many potential EV buyers still worry about charging them, the availability of public charging has significantly improved in recent years.

Biden-era funding and private investment have increased charging across the nation. There are now more than 232,000 individual Level 2 and fast charging ports in the U.S. As of this year, enough fast charging ports have been installed to average one for every mile of National Highway System roads in the U.S., according to an AP analysis of data from the Department of Energy.

However, those fast charging stations aren’t evenly dispersed. Many are concentrated in the far West and the Northeast, where sales of EVs are highest.

Experts note that most EV charging can be done at home.

Safety

TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY SEAN DUFFY: The reduced requirements will make drivers “safer on the roads because of all the great new technology we have that save lives.”

THE FACTS: Newer vehicles — gas and electric — are full of advanced safety features, including automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping, collision warnings and more.

Duffy suggested that consumers will be more likely to buy new vehicles if they are more affordable — meaning fewer old cars on the streets without the safety technology. This assumes vehicle prices will actually go down with eased requirements, which experts say might not be the case. Besides, high tech adds to a vehicle’s cost.

“If Americans purchased more new vehicles equipped with the latest safety technologies, we would expect overall on-road safety to improve,” Edmunds’ Caldwell said. “However, it’s unclear whether easing fuel-economy standards will meaningfully increase new-vehicle sales.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent automotive research nonprofit, also says electric or hybrid vehicles are as safe as or safer than gasoline-powered cars.

Another part of safety is public health. Efficiency requirements put into place to address the 1970s oil crisis were also a way to reduce pollution that is harmful to humans and the environment.

“This rollback would move the auto industry backwards, keeping polluting cars on our roads for years to come and threatening the health of millions of Americans,” said Katherine García, director of the Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All campaign. “This dangerous proposal adds to the long list of ways the Trump administration is dismantling our clean air and public health protections.”

Associated Press data journalist M.K. Wildeman contributed from Hartford, Connecticut.

Follow Alexa St. John on X: @alexa_stjohn and reach her at ast.john@ap.org. Read more of AP’s climate coverage.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

By FATIMA HUSSEIN

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Social Security Administration is hoping to cut visits to its field offices in half next year, a move that advocates for the agency fear signals more closures are coming.

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Field offices have long been community-based branches that serve as the public face of the SSA, which provide in-person help for people applying for retirement and disability benefits, getting Social Security cards and other important services.

A November internal field office operating plan shared with The Associated Press outlines a proposed target of 50% fewer field office visitors in fiscal year 2026 compared to fiscal year 2025, or no more than 15 million field office visits by members of the public. Agency field offices saw more than 31.6 million field office visits from SSA recipients from Oct. 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2025, according to the agency document.

A Social Security spokesperson who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the administration’s plans for the agency said field offices will remain a front-line service to the roughly 75 million Americans who receive monthly payments. However, the spokesperson noted, more Americans are choosing to manage their benefits online or over the phone.

Nextgov/FCW first reported on the agency’s plan to reduce field office foot traffic.

At least 7,000 SSA workers have been laid off from the agency this year as the Trump administration has proposed a number of plans to streamline services at the SSA.

In March, after outcry from lawmakers and the public, SSA leadership partially backtracked on a plan that would require all new and existing beneficiaries who are unable to use the agency’s online portal to travel to a Social Security field office to verify their identity.

Jessica LaPointe, a union leader for 30,000 Social Security workers through The American Federation of Government Employees, or AFGE, said field offices are part of the quality of life agenda within communities, especially for “people who don’t have the resources to purchase technology to navigate the online world and they should be able to walk into an office to get help.”

She said the SSA wants “to allow AI and the internet to replace a well-trained, well-vetted workforce.”

Several field offices in rural areas of the U.S. have already closed this year because of a lack of staffing.

The Social Security website lists several office closures as well as offices that are only able to assist by phone until further notice.

Chris Delaney, a Social Security claims specialist and president of AFGE Local 3343 in Hudson, says he cannot imagine how SSA can have a goal of cutting foot traffic when his office is seeing an increase in foot traffic and a growing aging population reliant on SSA income. The Hudson office sees roughly 30 to 60 visitors per day who have questions about their benefits.

“A lot of people can’t get past the ID verification on login.gov, and just because they have a cellphone doesn’t mean they’re capable of creating an online account,” Delaney said. “Having people in the office when they need it is important.”

The 2026 operating plan also calls for all requested appointments to be scheduled within 30 days, instead of the current rate of 78.3% of all appointments scheduled within 30 days.

Social Security is one of the nation’s largest and most popular social programs. A January poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that two-thirds of U.S. adults think the country is spending too little on Social Security.

The agency has faced several lawsuits over the Trump administration’s plans to overhaul the agency.

In October, Democracy Forward, a legal group challenging the Trump administration’s policies, filed a lawsuit to compel SSA to release public records about service disruptions and policy changes.

“After executing the largest staffing cuts in the 90-year history of Social Security, they’re trying to deal with a problem they created without any meaningful discussion,” LaPointe said. “What they’re doing is void of public input.”

Much of the baseball world is preparing to congregate in Orlando, Fla., for the Winter Meetings, which kick off Monday. It’s a time for executives, agents and others to gather, and trades or free agency signings typically follow.

The Twins hired a new manager and rebuilt their coaching staff in November but little has been done to alter a roster that was torn down at the trade deadline. Perhaps this week will shed some light on what blueprint the Twins’ front office is planning to follow this offseason.

Pablo Lopez #49 of the Minnesota Twins pitches against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Comerica Park on July 26, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)

Or, maybe not. In recent years, the front office has worked late into the offseason to build out the roster.

Here are three Twins-related things to keep an eye out for this week during the Winter Meetings:

Will we learn what direction the Twins are taking?

The offseason started more than two months ago and we still haven’t found out much about what direction the Twins are going. Will they continue to trade productive veterans? What will the payroll look like?

Thus far, the Twins have made only minor additions, adding backup catcher Alex Jackson in a swap with Baltimore, reliever Eric Orze in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays and claiming utilityman Ryan Kreidler off waivers.

Nobody expects them to be big spenders this winter, but rumors have been swirling around the trade statuses of their top two starters, Pablo López and Joe Ryan. There has even been recent speculation that all-star center fielder Byron Buxton is a potential trade candidate.

Will the Twins, in an effort to shed more from the payroll, trade one or both of the starters? López is projected to be the highest-paid player on the roster. Buxton would be second. If López and/or Ryan are sent off in trades, would that test the loyalty of even the most loyal — Buxton — to the point that he would consider waiving his no-trade clause?

All of this is tied to payroll, of course, which remains a question mark publicly. The Pohlad family announced in August that it would retain ownership of the team and add two limited partnership groups, though those have yet to be publicly identified and it remains seen what impact they might have on payroll.

President of baseball and business operations Derek Falvey will meet with the media at the Winter Meetings and perhaps shed light on what the rest of this offseason could look like.

Where will the Twins end up in the draft?

With some of the best odds in the draft lottery, Tuesday will be a big day for the future of the organization.

The Twins finished the 2025 season with the fourth-worst record in the majors, in front of only the Colorado Rockies, Chicago White Sox and Washington Nationals. But they actually have the second-best odds in the lottery. Both the Rockies and Nationals are ineligible for a lottery pick this year, meaning only the White Sox (27.73 percent) have higher odds of landing the first overall pick than the Twins (22.18 percent).

The lottery has worked in the Twins’ favor once. They got lucky in 2023, moving up eight spots to select now-top prospect Walker Jenkins fifth overall.

Will the Twins select someone in the Rule 5 draft?

The Twins selected right-handed pitcher Eiberson Castellano from the Philadelphia Phillies last year in the major league phase of the Rule 5 Draft, marking the first time since 2017 that they had made a selection.

His stay in the organization was brief. Castellano spent spring training with the Twins but was unable to crack the 26-man roster out of camp and, per MLB rules, was offered back to the Phillies.

Might the Twins try again this year in Wednesday’s draft?

After trading away five members of the bullpen at the trade deadline, the Twins need relief help and could add someone to join the competition when spring training begins in February.

Byron Buxton #25 of the Minnesota Twins slides into third base on a triple against the Chicago White Sox in the first inning at Target Field on Sept. 2, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

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By FABIOLA SANCHEZ, Associated Press

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s anti-money laundering office has frozen the bank accounts of the Mexican co-owner of Miss Universe as part of an investigation into drugs, fuel and arms trafficking, an official said Friday.

The country’s Financial Intelligence Unit, which oversees the fight against money laundering, froze Mexican businessman Raúl Rocha Cantú’s bank accounts in Mexico, a federal official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the investigation.

The action against Rocha Cantú adds to mounting controversies for the Miss Universe organization. Last week, a court in Thailand issued an arrest warrant for the Thai co-owner of the Miss Universe Organization in connection with a fraud case and this year´s competition — won by Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch — faced allegations of rigging.

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The Miss Universe organization did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment about the allegations against Rocha Cantú.

Mexico’s federal prosecutors said last week that Rocha Cantú has been under investigation since November 2024 for alleged organized crime activity, including drug and arms trafficking, as well as fuel theft. Last month, a federal judge issued 13 arrest warrants for some of those involved in the case, including the Mexican businessman, whose company Legacy Holding Group USA owns 50% of the Miss Universe shares.

The organization’s other 50% belongs to JKN Global Group Public Co. Ltd., a company owned by Jakkaphong “Anne” Jakrajutatip.

A Thai court last week issued an arrest warrant for Jakrajutatip who was released on bail in 2023 on the fraud case. She failed to appear as required in a Bangkok court on Nov. 25. Since she did not notify the court about her absence, she was deemed to be a flight risk, according to a statement from the Bangkok South District Court.

The court rescheduled her hearing for Dec. 26.

Rocha Cantú was also a part owner of the Casino Royale in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey, when it was attacked in 2011 by a group of gunmen who entered it, doused gasoline and set it on fire, killing 52 people.

Baltazar Saucedo Estrada, who was charged with planning the attack, was sentenced in July to 135 years in prison.