WASHINGTON D.C. (WSAU) – The U.S. House of Representatives has voted in favor of ending a recent environmental protection agency emissions rule that would mandate that over half of U.S. vehicle sales be electric by 2032.
According to the New York Post, the measure was passed on Friday following a 215-191 vote that included eight Democrats voting in favor and just one Republican voting against. The measure was initially introduced to the government body by Michigan Rep. John James, who called the regulations “out of touch” and would do more harm than good, saying, “Folks in my district simply can’t afford to spend an additional $12,000 on an expensive, unreliable EV. Allowing the Biden-Harris administration to continue stifling consumer choice will only harm the American people.’’
House Energy and Commerce Committee chair Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers says she believes the name of the regulation is misleading to voters, saying, “The EPA’s latest tailpipe emissions rule is not really about reducing air pollution. It’s about forcing Americans to drive electric vehicles,’’ and “just another example of how the Biden-Harris administration’s rush-to-green agenda is handing China the key to America’s energy future, jeopardizing our auto industry and forcing people to buy unaffordable EVs they don’t want.’’
According to the EPA, if 56% of new car sales are electric by 2032, the industry could achieve the regulations in the mandate, the Post reports. The standard would also mandate that by 2032, at least 13% of vehicles will be plug-in hybrids or other partially electric vehicles and comes only months after President Biden pledged in March to make at least half of new vehicles sold in the U.S. zero emission by 2030.
Overall, electric vehicle sales have struggled in the U.S., which saw sales fall to 7.1% in the first quarter of 2024 with just 268,909 EVS total sold, according to Kelly Blue Book, in large part due to Tesla sales being down 13.3% year over year. The Washington Post reported back in March that despite the federal government agreeing to spend $7.5 billion on building EV charging stations in 2021, so far only seven total stations have been built out of the 500,000 station goal of the program.
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