House Throws $2 Billion More Cash at Clunkers

As Bob Franken wrote earlier, money for the "cash for clunkers" program is moving faster than a Prius on Highway 1. So the House voted Friday, 316 to 109, to throw a $2 billion lifeline to the surprisingly popular gas guzzler trade-in program.

After word came late this week that the clunkers program has nearly run through its $1-billion allotment and may need to shut down immediately, Democrats huddled to craft a plan to keep the trade-in program alive through the fall.

At a Friday morning meeting, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told fellow Democrats that the House will vote to transfer $2 billion of the $787 billion stimulus package to the clunkers program. The transfer would come from renewable energy loan guarantees, which have been slow to move out. The clunkers program, according to a Democratic aide, is "a more urgent priority."

Congress passed cash for clunkers this summer. Owners of gas guzzlers can receive up to $4,500 toward the purchase of a more fuel-efficient vehicle.

If the Senate goes along with the House next week, the $2 billion addition will keep the effort alive through the original November deadline and could spur as many as 500,000 new car sales.