Congress blocks California’s EV mandate. What does that mean for climate goals?
California Gov. Gavin Newsom and environmental groups condemned a resolution headed to President Donald Trump that, if signed, would block the state’s authority to set stricter air standards and phase out gas-powered cars.
The governor did not give any indication he would back down from implementing the state’s ambitious climate agenda, even as Trump and congressional Republicans work to foil it.
Newsom called it “a big day for Big Oil” and said the state will sue over Congress’ move to use the Congressional Review Act to nullify EPA-granted waivers.
“This is all about polluters being able to pollute more,” a frustrated Newsom said during a Thursday press conference on the top of the California Environmental Protection Agency office in downtown Sacramento.
Newsom in 2020 issued an executive order to require all new cars sold in the state be zero-emission vehicles by 2035. Currently, about a quarter of new cars sold in California meet the standard.
The governor and leaders of the California Air Resources Board said Congress’ action goes against decades of precedent in which presidents of both parties have allowed California to set its own, stricter clean air standards.
Newsom promised to “protect the legacy” of the Republicans Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, who had early hands in establishing California’s first environmental rules. In 1967 then-Gov. Reagan created CARB to improve the state’s poor air quality. And as president, Nixon created the federal Environmental Protection Agency and approved California’s first clean air waivers.
The catalytic converter – which reduces pollutants from combustion engines – the check engine light, and tight-fitting, vapor-reducing gas caps all came from state waivers approved by the EPA.
“Those regulations have brought significant benefits, including reducing many pollutant levels between 75% and 99%, even as population has increased and vehicle use has quadrupled,” said CARB Chair Liane Randolph.
Still, some regions of the state continue to suffer from poor air quality. Five California cities are among the top 10 most polluted in the country, according to the American Lung Association.
What it means for Newsom’s environmental goals
The state waged a similar legal battle in 2019, when Trump revoked the state’s right to set its own vehicle emissions standards. Trump left office before the lawsuit was decided; the Biden administration dropped it and later approved the three waivers now targeted by congressional Republicans.
Newsom said he would continue to fight any effort by the Trump administration to limit California’s ability to reduce climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions.
But he refused to say whether he would adjust his own agenda if the waiver revocations stand.
“We’re going to litigate. We’re going to apply a very rigorous and sound argument,” Newsom said. He said the forthcoming lawsuit was “just around these three specific waivers” and that the state was “still moving forward … across a myriad of issues.”
Still, the state is far from meeting its first benchmark in phasing out gas-powered cars, which requires 35% of new car sales to be electric or zero emissions by 2026. EVs accounted for 23% of new car sales in the first quarter of this year.
Brian Maas, president of the California New Car Dealers Association, said the “federal development presents an opportunity to recalibrate the state’s approach.”
He said car dealers support the state’s efforts to move toward cleaner transportation but that policies should be “market-aligned” and reflect “consumer demand, infrastructure availability, and affordability.”
