The strict regulations, which will prohibit the sale of new gasoline
vehicles by 2035 and set intermediate goals to phase them out, were approved
by California's air regulators on Thursday.
The law would be one of the first of its kind globally and is significant
for the US. Given the size of California's economy and the likelihood that
other states may enact regulations along similar lines, it has significant
consequences for the US automobile market.
Daniel Sperling, a member of the California Air Resources Board, told CNN
that "this is enormous." "The most significant action CARB has taken in the
past 30 years is this. Not only is it significant for California, but also
for the rest of the nation and the entire globe."
In addition, interim quotas for zero-emission cars, with a concentration on
new models, would be imposed under the board's new regulations. 35% of new
cars, SUVs, and compact trucks sold in California starting in 2026 must be
zero-emission vehicles. It is anticipated that this quota will rise each
year, reaching 51% of all new car sales in 2028, 68% in 2030, and 100% in
2035. The rules would also let plug-in hybrids to make up 20% of sales
zero-emission vehicles.
Used cars might continue to be driven on the roads because the restrictions
wouldn't affect them. According to Sperling, the regulations won't take
effect right away but rather in 2026.
It is anticipated that many states would do the same. Already, 15 states
have adopted California's earlier zero-emission car laws, including
Colorado, Minnesota, and states in the Northeast and West Coast.
According to Alex Stack, a spokeswoman for California Governor Gavin
Newsom, California doesn't have a precise tally of how many of those states
will embrace the 2035 ban on the sale of new gas vehicles, but it expects
the "majority of the states to follow." While New Jersey and Maryland
authorities said they were examining California's decision, officials from
New York, Oregon, Washington state, and Rhode Island confirmed to CNN that
they planned to implement California's regulation through their own
rule-making process. A similar idea in Washington state will be open for
public feedback beginning September 7.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement to CNN that Washington is
ready to implement these same standards by the end of the year because "this
is an important milestone in our climate battle." "We look forward to
working with other states and the Biden Administration to significantly cut
the nation's main source of greenhouse gas emissions," the statement
reads.
Basil Seggos, commissioner of the New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation, said in a statement to CNN that California's
decision on Thursday "unlocks New York's authority to enact the same
legislation."
Sperling claimed that the US car sector may change if the majority of these
states follow California's example.
According to Sperling, "This is a sizable portion of the US market." "A
large portion of the country will be moving forward even if the feds don't
move on a regulatory viewpoint."
According to Sperling, there was "very little dispute" and criticism from
automakers throughout the rule-drafting process, indicating that the
industry as a whole is supporting the transition to zero-emission vehicles.
Ford and GM are two businesses that have already made ambitious plans to
transition to zero-emission vehicles, trucks, and SUVs.
According to Sperling, "the car industry observe what's occurring in China
and Europe." Many of them have already announced that they would switch
entirely to electric vehicles.
The decision on Thursday is the result of years of preparation; Governor
Gavin Newsom issued an executive order in 2020 requiring all vehicles sold
in the state to be zero-emission by 2035.
Eleni Kounalakis, the lieutenant governor of California, said to CNN's Kate
Bolduan on Thursday that the goal of the new criteria is to "establish the
route to get there."
The Biden administration gave California a lift as well by restoring the
state's long-standing authority to set its own auto pollution rules earlier
this year. In 2019, the Trump administration reversed the California
waiver.
