| Today, EMA’s 48 state and regional trade associations, along with the American Farm Bureau, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, API, Clean Fuels Alliance America, Growth Energy, National Corn Growers Association, NACS, NATSO, Renewable Fuels Association, SIGMA, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several other organizations urged the Biden Administration to reconsider its GHG standards proposed rule for light and medium-duty vehicles for model years 2027 and later. EPA projects that a potential outcome of the rule would require nearly 70 percent of all new light duty vehicle sales to be battery electric vehicles (EVs) by 2032. Unfortunately, the focus on EV production will fundamentally eliminate an opportunity to provide clean green liquid fuels such as renewable diesel, biodiesel, renewable gasoline, clean hydrogen and ethanol that immediately lower emissions not only for new vehicles, but for the vehicles currently on the road. In addition, the rule will limit consumer choice on cleaner internal combustion engines and threaten the viability and jobs of small business energy marketers around the country. CLICK HERE to read the letter.
Even though automakers are committed to boosting EVs, many of them, as well as members on Capitol Hill, are raising questions about the Biden Administration’s new approach, from securing critical materials needed for EV batteries, to the availability of EV charging stations and the ability of electric grids to meet power needs. China’s stranglehold on the critical minerals industry and mining in Africa is a major concern. “Unfortunately, President Biden’s aggressive attempt to electrify the transportation sector will limit consumer choice on cleaner greener ICEs, increase Americans’ utility bills to subsidize a massive expansion of the electric grid for EV charging and threaten the viability and jobs of small business energy marketers around the country, whether they deliver gasoline and diesel or renewable fuels like ethanol, biodiesel and renewable diesel,” said EMA President Rob Underwood. Legal Challenges Playing Out EMA is part of business groups and States who already have asked the courts to review EPA’s prior tailpipe emissions standards for model year 2025 and 2026 vehicles and the Agency’s reinstatement of California’s Clean Air Act waiver to issue climate-based vehicle emissions standards. Whether California can blaze its own trail on combatting climate change also implicates the “major questions doctrine,” which holds that courts should not defer to agencies on questions of “vast economic or political significance” unless Congress has provided explicit authority to the agencies. The appeals court will be asked to decide whether Congress authorized California in the Clean Air Act to regulate vehicle emissions to target a phenomenon like climate change which has a global cause and effect. Additionally, EMA also joined as amicus curiae challenge to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s fuel-economy standards. EMA also endorsed the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturer’s (AFPM) comments regarding EPA’s GHG standards for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles for model years 2027 and later last week. EMA urged the EPA to consider lifecycle emissions and a technology neutral approach when it comes to promoting policies to reduce emissions. Click here to read EMA’s comments and check out fuelmatters.org for more information. |
