EPA grants California authority to ban sales of new gas cars by 2035. Action faces reversal by Trump

Associated Press ^ | December 18, 2024 | Matthew Daly

[karpov]

The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday granted two requests from California to enforce strict standards for vehicle emissions, including a rule aimed at banning sales of new gasoline-powered cars in the state by 2035. The incoming Trump administration is likely to try to reverse the action.

The California rule is stricter than a federal rule adopted this year that tightens emissions standards but does not require sales of electric vehicles.

EPA said its review found that opponents of the two waivers did not meet their legal burden to show how either the EV rule or a separate measure on heavy-duty vehicles was inconsistent with the federal Clean Air Act.

“California has longstanding authority to request waivers from EPA to protect its residents from dangerous air pollution coming from mobile sources like cars and trucks,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. “Today’s actions follow through on EPA’s commitment to partner with states to reduce emissions and act on the threat of climate change.”

The new waiver is important not only to California but to more than a dozen other states that follow its nation-leading standards on vehicle emissions.

Even so, the waiver is likely to be short-lived. President-elect Donald Trump has said he will move to revoke all California waivers as part of an industry-friendly approach that includes boosting production of fossil fuels and repealing key parts of a landmark 2022 climate law.

Trump rescinded California’s authority on emissions in 2019, only to be reversed three years later by the Biden EPA, which restored the state’s authority in 2022.

Any effort by the new administration is likely to spawn a new set of legal challenges that could delay any action.

[Socon-Econ]

The statute needs to prohibit such bans, lest a Democrat president try again to reinstate them.

[GailA]

ME TOO. I’ll stick with my Chevy Malibu coupe, 30 miles to the gallon in city, 35 open road.

[rlmorel]

Hahahahahahah

[Lean-Right]

Not fair to assume every
voter thinks the same in
their prospective states.
There are a lot of
conservative Republican
voters in these states
that are against going full
EV, and certainly don’t
wish for the added
headachs.

[oldtech]

I am rather anti-EV, but this idea for California might not be a bad thing. They would get a close-up look at the problems it would likely cause. Just don’t use this thinking for the rest of the nation. Let it be California’s mistake.

[oldtech]

Over the years, I’ve heard many thoughts over the “wonderful” things the EPA has done & many of them from college educated people probably smarter than me. However, it would really tickle me if the EPA & their regs were discontinued; maybe replaced with something that made more sense.