Biden Set to Crack Down on Auto Emissions to Accelerate EV Sales

by Jennifer A. Doulhy (Bloomberg) EPA expected to finalize tailpipe emission limits within days; Formula for calculating electric vehicle fuel use also coming -- The Biden administration is preparing to roll out the toughest-ever limits on pollution from the nation’s cars and light trucks after making changes likely to mollify some automakers.

Emissions limits set to be finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency within days would propel electric vehicle sales well beyond current levels. The EPA has projected that to meet proposed mandates, electric models would need to make up roughly two-thirds of car and light truck sales in 2032 — up from less than a tenth last year. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico: The Biden administration is expected to unveil the final version of one of its most pivotal climate rules next week — a clean car rule that could result in two-thirds of new passenger vehicles sold in 2032 running on electricity.

The Environmental Protection Agency has invited environmental and public health groups to an event Wednesday with Administrator Michael Regan to announce the regulation, according to three people with knowledge of the agency’s timing, who were granted anonymity to discuss the still-unpublicized action.

The announcement concerns “EPA’s work to address climate change, improve air quality and protect public health,” according to the invite, which POLITICO’s E&E News reviewed.

The regulation on passenger cars and light trucks, first announced last spring, is a cornerstone of the Biden administration’s campaign to address climate change. Transportation is the nation’s biggest source of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases, and passenger cars and trucks account for most of those emissions.

The rule would require carmakers to cut their average emissions of carbon dioxide 52 percent between 2027 and 2032. EPA projects that the standard would push the car industry to ensure that electric cars and light trucks make up about 67 percent of new vehicles by model year 2032.

A separate climate rule for heavy-duty trucks is expected to be announced later.

E&E News and other outlets reported last month that EPA’s final passenger car rule would offer automakers more time to scale up the share of their fleet that runs on batteries compared with last year’s proposed rule. The change came after intense lobbying from U.S. car manufacturers and as President Joe Biden looks to shore up support from autoworkers in states like Michigan ahead of this year’s presidential election.

Those changes track with an alternative regulatory option that EPA explored in last year’s draft that ratchets down emissions limits evenly rather than front-loading them in early years.

In addition to carbon emissions, the rule also tackles ozone-forming emissions and toxics from passenger cars built in model year 2027 through 2032. READ MORE

Excerpt from Associated Press: Three people with knowledge of the standards say the Biden EPA will pick an alternative that slows implementation from 2027 through 2029, but ramps up to reach the level the EPA preferred from 2030 to 2032. The alternative will have other modifications that help the auto industry meet the standards, including the calculation of how EV fuel economy is measured, one of the people said. READ MORE