The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday proposed ambitious new car pollution rules that could require electric vehicles to account for up to two-thirds of new cars sold in the US by 2032, in what would be one of the Biden administration’s most aggressive climate-change policies yet.
The tailpipe standards would also have the effect of cutting planet-warming pollution from cars in half. Transportation accounts for nearly 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the US, according to the EPA.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan called the regulations “the strongest-ever federal pollution standards for cars and trucks.”
Electric vehicle sales hit a tipping point in 2022
Regan touted the proposed rules on “CNN News Central” on Wednesday, claiming they would bring down costs for consumers and slash planet-warming pollution.
“This is a future for everyone, and we’re starting to see all of the auto industry move in this direction,” Regan told CNN’s Sara Sidner, saying strong auto emissions rules have been part of President Joe Biden’s “vision from day one.”
EPA officials said that they are considering several different emissions proposals, which could result in anywhere from a 64% to 69% electric vehicle adoption rate by early next decade. If approved, the emissions standards would start model year 2027 vehicles.
The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday proposed ambitious new car pollution rules that could require electric vehicles to account for up to two-thirds of new cars sold in the US by 2032, in what would be one of the Biden administration’s most aggressive climate-change policies yet.
The tailpipe standards would also have the effect of cutting planet-warming pollution from cars in half. Transportation accounts for nearly 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the US, according to the EPA.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan called the regulations “the strongest-ever federal pollution standards for cars and trucks.”
Electric vehicle sales hit a tipping point in 2022
Regan touted the proposed rules on “CNN News Central” on Wednesday, claiming they would bring down costs for consumers and slash planet-warming pollution.
“This is a future for everyone, and we’re starting to see all of the auto industry move in this direction,” Regan told CNN’s Sara Sidner, saying strong auto emissions rules have been part of President Joe Biden’s “vision from day one.”
EPA officials said that they are considering several different emissions proposals, which could result in anywhere from a 64% to 69% electric vehicle adoption rate by early next decade. If approved, the emissions standards would start model year 2027 vehicles.
That means much of the US car industry will already be transitioning ahead of the proposed federal rules.
“I believe it’s pretty doable,” Margo Oge, chair of the International Council on Clean Transportation and a former Obama EPA official, said of the aggressive transition to EVs. “The industry is there. Europe is ahead of the US, China is ahead of Europe – and these companies are global companies.”
New federal tax credits are coming next week that aim to help American consumers save up to $7,500 on an EV. But they have incredibly complex requirements for the auto industry – including that the cars’ batteries and components come from the US or countries it has a free-trade agreement with.
Still, Boylan said the regulations are designed to gradually work over the next decade, by which time consumers should have far more electric vehicle options to choose from.
“You’ve got the tax credits as the carrot,” Boylan said. The proposed tailpipe regulation “provides the stick to backstop these incentives and push the industry forward.”
Regan told CNN the rules would be phased in gradually, giving auto makers and consumers years before they fully go into effect. During that time, the administration is focused on installing more EV charging stations and expanding access to $7,500 federal EV tax credits.
“What we’re looking at is a ramp-up period,” Regan said on CNN. “We’re going to see a massive buildup over the next couple years, and we’re starting to see those electric vehicle sales numbers grow already.”
The EPA will take public comment on the proposal before finalizing the rules in the coming months.