The Transportation Department declared that former President Joe Biden’s fuel economy standards went beyond the government’s legal authority by including electric vehicles.
In his first act in office, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced in January that the agency would review Biden’s fuel economy standards, which require vehicles to achieve a certain mileage for every gallon of gas as a way to reduce vehicle emissions.
Recommended Stories
- The sun sets on California's massive solar plant
- 2,000 gallons of diesel spill into Baltimore harbor
- Trump administration announces 'long overdue reforms' to punishments for energy company violations
“These fuel economy standards are set at such aggressive levels that automakers cannot, as a practical matter, satisfy the standards without rapidly shifting production away from internal-combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to alternative electric technologies,” Duffy said in a memo.
Automaker officials told Reuters that the Transportation Department finalized its Resetting the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Program, also known as CAFE standards, on Friday.
Last June, the Biden administration finalized stringent CAFE standards to reduce vehicle emissions and boost the transition toward electric vehicles. The Biden rule increased fuel economy standards by 2% per year for passenger cars and light trucks. At the time, the administration said it would save vehicle owners more than $600 in fuel over the lifetime of their vehicles. The rule also required heavy-duty vehicles to increase fuel efficiency by 10% per year for model years 2030-2032.
The rule recommended that automakers use available technologies, such as advanced internal combustion engines, hybrid technologies, and electric vehicles, to meet standards.
However, DOT plans to remove EVs from the regulations and calculation for credits, Reuters reported. The move could lower fuel economy standards. The administration intends to revise the fuel economy standards in a separate regulation.
The final rule, which has yet to be published, is another move by the Trump administration to undo policies and regulations set by the Biden administration that sought to boost the EV industry.