EVs the Focus of Newsom’s Efforts to “Safeguard” California from Trump Administration
Governor Gavin Newsom is looking to protect California’s electric vehicle (EV) policies during the last months of the Biden administration. Newsom convened a special legislative session, to begin December 2, to increase legal resources to “safeguard California values and fundamental rights in the face of an incoming Trump administration.” He is also lobbying the Biden administration to approve California’s pending waivers to sets its own vehicle emissions standards.
President-elect Donald Trump has been a consistent critic of California’s EV policies and has stated that he will revoke California’s zero-emission rules once in office, as he did in 2019. Among the “consequences of [Trump’s] presidency for California,” Newsom stated, is the risk of “[u]ndoing clean vehicle policies that are critical to combatting climate change...”
EV “Mandate”
Trump has been highly critical of policies to phase-out gasoline-fueled or diesel-fueled vehicles in favor of EVs. At the Republican National Convention in July 2024, Trump said he will “end the electric vehicle mandate on Day One.” This was a reference to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) clean car standards, issued in March 2024, that establish tailpipe emission reduction targets through 2032. Trump has also criticized California’s 2022 regulations that require the phase-out of the sale of new gasoline-fueled or diesel-fueled passenger cars and trucks by 2035.Campaign officials have stated that these California EV rules, if adopted by other states, would hurt the U.S. auto industry and benefit Chinese EV manufacturers.
California’s Emissions Waiver
The EPA typically sets standards for emissions from passenger cars, trucks and other vehicles, but California has historically been granted waivers under the Clean Air Act of 1970 to impose its own emissions standards that exceed federal standards. Other states can then adopt California’s stricter standards. (see California’s Energy Transition from Oil State to Fossil Free: Introduction Part Four—Auto Emissions).
The waiver became more controversial when California policymakers requested the authority to set auto emissions standards that covered greenhouse gases (GHGs). The administration of George W. Bush denied this request in 2008, the first denial of a California waiver request. The Obama administration reversed the decision in 2013 and gave the state the authority to set auto emissions standards for GHGs through model year 2025.
In 2019, the Trump administration revoked the waiver under its Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule, which established a single national program for fuel efficiency and GHG emission standards rather than a unified California and federal system that allowed California stricter emissions standards. The Biden administration challenged the waiver withdrawal, and the EPA reinstated California’s authority to implement its own emissions standards.
Eight Climate Waivers under Review
California is currently awaiting waivers from the EPA on eight emissions rules. Newsom has lobbied the Biden administration to approve the waivers by January 19, its last day in office. The Trump administration’s EPA is likely to deny these waivers if they are not approved before President Joe Biden leaves office. Trump could also revoke them as he did in 2019, but the revocation process is more difficult than simply denying the waivers.
The waivers under review are:
The Small Off-Road Engines (SORE) rule, which would ban the sale of gas-powered yard equipment.
The Commercial Harbor Craft rule, which would require new harbor craft to be zero-emissions.
The In-Use Locomotive rule, which would phase out diesel engine locomotives.
The Advanced Clean Cars II rule, which would eventually ban the sale of new, gasoline-powered cars by 2035.
The Advanced Clean Fleets rule, which would require truck fleets to be ZEVs by 2036.
The In-Use Off-Road Diesel-Fueled Fleet rule, which would phase out certain diesel fueled equipment.
The Transport Refrigeration Units rule, which would phase out diesel-powered transport refrigeration units.
The Heavy-Duty Omnibus rule, which would establish more stringent emissions standards for heavy-duty engines and lengthen the useful life and emissions warranty for new heavy-duty vehicles.