Biden administration expected to offer California waiver to ban on gas-powered cars by 2035: report

The Biden administration is reportedly considering allowing California to ban new gasoline vehicles in the state. As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to roll back several green energy policies next year,

California set greenhouse gas emissions standards to ban new gasoline-powered cars in the state by 2035, but the regulations would need a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to proceed.

Just weeks before Biden’s term ends, it is reported that the EPA is planning to grant a waiver to allow states to set more stringent greenhouse gas emissions standards for electric vehicles than the federal government allows. The Washington Post first reported. It cited multiple sources who had been briefed on the matter.

The EPA did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, but an agency spokesperson told POLITICO’s E&E News that they are still reviewing the regulations. “To ensure that decisions are durable and in accordance with the law.”

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A Ford Pro AC charging station charges a Ford Transit electric vehicle during the 2024 AutoMobility LA auto show at the Los Angeles Convention Center on November 1, 2024. (Etienne Laurent)

The report comes just days before the Supreme Court rejected a request from an oil company to challenge California’s constitutional authority to create its own standards regarding electric vehicles.

The California Air Resources Board requested a federal exemption to allow it to require 22% of new cars sold to be net-zero emissions by 2025 and achieve a complete ban on gas-powered cars by 2035. citing concerns about climate change

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The state’s waiver request has been challenged by several conservative states and oil groups. This raises the question of whether the state has the legal authority to set such emissions standards. But on Monday The Supreme Court denied their request for review.

California Governor Gavin Newsom plans to fight President Donald Trump if he challenges the state’s emissions standards for EVs. (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)

“EPA’s decision to allow a waiver of this reservation in California is based on a strong legal foundation and decades of precedent. and help ensure vital clean air protection for millions of people,” said Alice Henderson, Director and Chief Adviser to Transportation and Clean Air.

Trump is reportedly planning to specifically target California’s EV standards when he takes office.

During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump slammed Biden’s actions related to California’s proposed electric vehicle mandate regulations.

“Having just issued a crazy, job-killing electric car mandate at the federal level, Crooked Joe Biden is preparing to kill the rest of the U.S. auto industry. by approving California’s waiver request banning the sale of all gasoline-powered vehicles,” Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital in a statement.

President-elect Donald Trump plans to target President Biden’s green energy policies. When he takes office in 2024 (Oleg Nikishin)

Levitt said. If chosen On his first day in office Trump will revoke federal EV requirements and any exemptions that the Biden administration issued to California

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California officials met in early December to determine guidelines. “Trump-proof” before the president-elect takes office It earmarked $25 million for a legal defense fund to fight the incoming administration.