U.S. to ease tailpipe emissions rules, slow EV transition goal
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration will relax its 2030 goals to reduce tailpipe emissions and increase electric vehicle sales, two sources told Reuters on February 18th.
Automakers and the United Auto Workers urged the Biden administration to slow down plans to grow electric vehicle sales. They say electric vehicle technology is still too expensive for many mainstream U.S. consumers and will take more time to develop charging infrastructure.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed in April 2023 to require a 56 percent reduction in new vehicle emissions by 2032. And under the EPA's original 2027-2032 proposal, automakers are aiming for electric vehicles to account for 60 percent of new vehicle production by 2030. That would require boosting electric vehicles to 67 percent of new vehicles by 2032.
Under the revised final regulations, expected to be published next month, the EPA will slow the pace of its proposed annual emissions requirements for 2030. The new targets project electric vehicles as a percentage of total vehicle production to be less than 60 percent by 2030.