UPDATE: Auto Group Members Say Chief Lobbyist In DC Has Resigned

The auto industry's chief lobbyist in Washington said Monday he would resign, ending a nearly four-year tenure marked by a historic landmark agreement on environmental standards and the industry's near-collapse during the economic crisis.

Dave McCurdy, president and chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said in a statement that he would elaborate on his decision to leave in a news conference Wednesday. The American Gas Association, representing gas utilities, said that McCurdy is being considered to be its president once current president David Parker departs at the end of the year.

McCurdy, a former Democratic congressman from Oklahoma who previously was an electronic industries lobbyist, joined the auto alliance in February 2007. The group represents Detroit auto makers General Motors Co. (GM), Ford Motor Co. (F) and Chrysler Group LLC as well as Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) and most other major foreign car manufacturers.

McCurdy has been the auto makers' chief representative in talks with lawmakers and White House officials on environmental, safety and other policies affecting the industry. He was a leading figure in talks last year that led to a deal among the industry, California and the Obama administration that called for all new cars and light trucks sold in the U.S. to average 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. The agreement, while representing a nearly 35% increase over current standards, was praised by the industry because it, at least temporarily, will forestall states such as California from imposing a patchwork of individual state standards, which the industry believes would be difficult to meet.

"I joined the industry to become an agent of change, and in my first year, the Alliance stepped up and supported higher fuel economy standards and new child safety legislation," said McCurdy. "Each year thereafter, we continued to build upon those policy successes."

McCurdy also presided at a time when the industry's influence in Washington was weakened as GM, Chrysler and auto-parts suppliers needed government bailouts from Washington to prevent an industrywide collapse.

But the industry has resumed taking a more aggressive posture in recent months. McCurdy's group has criticized proposed government letter grades for cars based on environmental performance and is opposing a proposed 62 mpg national average fuel economy for 2020.

-By Josh Mitchell, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6637; joshua.mitchell@dowjones.com

-Tennille Tracy contributed to this report.

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