U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a proposal on Tuesday to repeal the 2009 Endangerment Finding, which has provided the legal basis for over $1 trillion in regulations, including infamous EV mandates under the Biden administration.
The proposal will undergo a period of public comment, but if finalized, would slash all the greenhouse gas emission regulations for motor vehicles and engines that have resulted from the finding.
The Obama-era Endangerment Finding, which the new proposal would reverse, classified gases such as methane and carbon dioxide as detrimental to the environment, and it argued that the unspecified amount of climate change caused by these gases would in turn negatively affect people’s health and welfare. Such an interpretation was needed to provide the legal foundation to legitimize regulating emissions standards for the nation’s industries under the Clean Air Act.
In contrast, the EPA’s proposal cites updated scientific data challenging the assumptions behind the 2009 Endangerment Finding. Among other problems with the outdated finding, Zeldin argued that it failed to acknowledge the ways in which carbon dioxide is actually beneficial and necessary for the planet.
“The Trump EPA is proposing to end sixteen years of uncertainty for automakers and American consumers,” Zeldin said at the announcement.
He also emphasized Americans’ need for an innovative energy supply unstifled by burdensome regulations. Zeldin argued that the “emissions standards themselves, not carbon dioxide which the Finding never assessed independently, [are] the real threat to Americans’ livelihoods.”
The proposal is expected to save Americans $54 billion in costs annually by reversing greenhouse gas standards on vehicles. One estimate from the Office of Management and Budget suggests that the decreased regulation will save the national economy between $1.7 to $8.2 trillion from 2027 to 2055.
In a podcast appearance further explaining the rule change, Zeldin added that the move is “basically driving a dagger into the heart of the climate change religion.”
Zeldin pointed to the sheer scope of the regulations affected by this one move, which he believes would amount to the largest deregulatory action in the U.S.’s history. “It’s one agency, in one year, doing more deregulation than entire federal governments across all agencies across entire presidencies. When you look back in history, that’s how much of a mess it is that we inherited,” he said.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright joined Zeldin in making the announcement at an auto dealership in Indiana. He said, “Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, America is returning to free and open dialogue around climate and energy policy — driving the focus back to following the data.”
“Today’s announcement is a monumental step toward returning to commonsense policies that expand access to affordable, reliable, secure energy and improve quality of life for all Americans,” Wright continued.
The EPA’s proposal works to implement President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order, “Unleashing American Energy,” as the agency seeks to topple associated regulations amounting to trillions of dollars when its new rules are finalized.
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