Tesla Urges Trump Administration to Retain Vehicle Emission Standards

According to foreign media reports, Tesla recently urged the Trump administration not to abolish vehicle emission standards and to maintain the long-established U.S. recognition that "greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health."

Tesla stated that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal to abolish the above standards "would leave engine and automobile manufacturers unbound in measuring, controlling, and reporting greenhouse gas emissions for all on-road engines and vehicles."

Image source: Tesla

Tesla stated that the proposed measures by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency "undermine the stability of U.S. emissions policy, diminish the value of performance incentives for electric vehicle manufacturers based on relevant environmental standards, and create an unfair competitive environment—this will weaken companies' willingness to invest in vehicle innovation."

Before this, an industry organization representing General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen, and nearly all other major automakers had requested the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to relax stringent vehicle emission limits—measures aimed at pushing the auto industry to produce more electric vehicles.

If the Trump administration abolishes vehicle emission restriction policies, Tesla is expected to see a reduction of billions of dollars in revenue from the sale of regulatory credits in the coming years.

Tesla stated that last year, $2.8 billion of its global revenue came from regulatory credit sales: the company automatically earns credits by selling zero-emission electric vehicles and sells these credits to traditional car manufacturers that need to meet emission targets.

In July of this year, Republican Senator Bernie Moreno from Ohio stated during a hearing that the credits purchased by other automakers from Tesla for compliance were "outrageously high."

Since 2019, Tesla has also invested $25 for each vehicle by adopting environmentally friendly air conditioning systems to earn regulatory credits. Tesla stated, "This investment has accumulated over the years with the production of millions of vehicles for the North American market, and the total investment has reached tens of millions of dollars."

In July of this year, the Trump administration announced that automakers failing to meet the fuel efficiency standards implemented since 2022 would not face fines. Previously, in June, Trump signed a veto resolution under the Congressional Review Act to halt a landmark plan in California that was set to completely stop the sale of pure gasoline cars by 2035.