WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 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 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.
鈥淐alifornia has longstanding authority to request waivers from EPA to protect its residents from dangerous air pollution coming from mobile sources like cars and trucks,鈥 EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. 鈥淭oday鈥檚 actions follow through on EPA鈥檚 commitment to partner with states to reduce emissions and act on the threat of climate change.鈥
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 and repealing key parts of a
Trump only to be reversed three years later by the Biden EPA, which in 2022.
Any effort by the new administration is likely to spawn a new set of legal challenges that could delay any action.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who often touts California's leadership on climate policy, said EPA's approval of the was a vote of confidence in California's accomplishments in 鈥減rotecting our people by cleaning our air and cutting pollution.鈥
鈥淣aysayers like President-elect Trump would prefer to side with the oil industry over consumers and American automakers, but California will continue fostering new innovations in the market," Newsom said.
Ford, Honda, Volkswagen and are meeting current California emission standards, but some major car companies questioned the latest EPA waiver.
Most of the Democratic-leaning states that have adopted California鈥檚 rules 鈥 clustered along the West Coast and in the Northeast 鈥 are not selling anywhere near the 35% level of EV sales required next year and are unlikely to meet the 2035 target of 100% EV sales, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a large industry group.
鈥淎chieving the sales mandates under current market realities will take a miracle. There needs to be balance and some states should exit the (California) program,'' said John Bozzella, the group's CEO.
Automakers are producing electric vehicles, Bozzella said, 鈥渂ut there鈥檚 a huge gap between these EV sales mandates and a customer鈥檚 reasonable expectation they can still choose what kind of vehicle to drive." He expects Trump to revoke the California waiver next year.
Scott Vazin, a spokesman for Toyota in North America, said approval of the California waiver 鈥渨ill distort the auto industry as companies funnel zero-emission vehicles to the states that have adopted California鈥檚 rules." If a customer in a state that follows California can't afford an EV 鈥渙r it doesn鈥檛 meet their needs, there may not be a non-electric vehicle on the lot to purchase for their mobility needs,'' Vazin said.
Environmental groups hailed the Biden administration's action.
鈥淓PA鈥檚 approval is a critical step forward in protecting our lungs from pollution and our wallets from the expenses of combustion fuels,鈥 said Paul Cort, director of Earthjustice鈥檚 Right To Zero campaign. 鈥淭he gradual shift in car sales to zero-emissions models will cut smog and household costs while growing California鈥檚 clean energy workforce."
Kathy Harris, director of clean vehicles at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the decision shows respect for California and other states.
鈥淐alifornia decided that transitioning to cleaner, zero-emission vehicles is the best way to address the unique (air pollution) burdens it faces,鈥 she said. 鈥淭his is exactly how our system of federalism should work. If other states don鈥檛 like California鈥檚 approach, they don鈥檛 need to follow it. But no one should object to the longstanding authority of states to act to protect their residents.鈥
The EPA's action comes as the said last week that it will take up a business-backed appeal challenging an earlier California waiver issued by the Biden administration. The justices agreed to hear an appeal filed by fuel producers who object to an EPA waiver granted in 2022.
The high court will not be reviewing the waiver itself but a related issue: whether fuel producers have legal standing to challenge it. A federal appeals court ruled that the companies lacked the right to sue because they produced no evidence that they would be affected by the waiver, which directly affects vehicle manufacturers.
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Associated Press writer Sophie Austin in Sacramento, California, contributed to this story.
