California in the United States Moves to Establish New Auto Emission Standards

According to Bloomberg, California's air quality regulatory agency is advancing the development of new car emission standards in the state and may introduce new electric vehicle tax credit policies to counter the Trump administration's attempts to limit the state's regulatory influence.

Image source: Tesla

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) and five other agencies have recommended that the state government fill the $7,500 federal electric vehicle tax credit set to expire at the end of September. In a report released on August 19, these agencies pointed out that although funding would depend on the availability of resources, vouchers, rebates, or other incentives would help boost electric vehicle sales and increase the supply of used electric vehicles.

This recommendation is one of several measures proposed by the agency in response to the executive order signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom in June of this year to help promote zero-emission vehicles. Liane Randolph, Chair of the California Air Resources Board, stated that the agency has also initiated a new round of rulemaking for vehicle emission standards.

Liane Randolph said, "For California, it is crucial to do everything within its own authority to avoid relying on the federal government in reducing automobile emissions." She noted that the relevant work is still in its early stages, and it may take up to three years to finalize the new standards.

This move is part of the ongoing dispute between California and the Trump administration over the state's authority to regulate automobile carbon emissions. In June of this year, U.S. President Trump signed a bill that revoked the waiver granted to California during former President Joe Biden's administration — a waiver that allowed California to set automobile pollution standards stricter than federal requirements.

In response, California and several other states filed lawsuits attempting to block this measure, which caused California's original plan to ban the sale of gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035 to become invalid. Gavin Newsom also instructed the California Air Resources Board to initiate the development of new regulations: if the court supports the Trump administration's action, the new regulations may either improve upon the original policy or be introduced as an alternative.

Liane Randolph stated that the federal government's "illegal" revocation of relevant policies could cause California to lose years of progress in carbon emission reductions.

The report released on August 19 also includes other recommendations, such as building more charging stations along major transportation corridors and exploring options to grant electric vehicles exclusive access to California’s carpool lanes. Currently, this privilege for electric vehicles is set to expire after September this year because the U.S. Congress did not extend a federal program—which allowed states to grant exemptions to carpool lane rules (which typically permit only vehicles with multiple occupants).