Tougher Car Emission Standards of California would end by Trump

Listen to this article

The Trump administration is boiling over the Clean Air Act agreement that enables California to impose stricter car emissions standards. The state effectively determines the standards for the rest of the country, negating any federal attempts at rolling back anti-pollution efforts. Bloomberg has indicated that an imminent proposed standards revision that would strip California of its extra authority. The EPA would suggest revoking California’s waiver. The NHTSA would maintain that California isn’t allowed to regulate emissions under the law that established federal-level fuel efficiency requirements. The measure would also cut short the Obama plan that would raise fleet fuel efficiency averages to 50MPG by 2025. This new proposal would stop the improvements at the 35MPG expected by 2020.

You will expect plenty of attempts by officials to spin the effort as a positive move. They might claim that this would lower the prices of vehicles, leading to more people upgrading to safer vehicles and reducing fatalities. They wouldn’t mention the possibility that people would spend more on fuel, however. The source added that the proposal is still under review, but the core elements aren’t expected to change. The Trump administration is poised to unveil it this week, although none of the parties involved have commented on the report. If the proposal moves ahead, there’s no guarantee that it will stick. California and its 12 main supporting states are expected to fight these changes tooth-and-nail, potentially resulting in a years-long legal battle that could leave the standards in place for years no matter who prevails.