On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed a resolution blocking California’s first-in-nation law that would have prohibited the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.
Before Trump’s signing ceremony at the White House concluded, California’s attorney general held a press conference to address the planned lawsuit, which was swiftly followed by the state’s announcement that it will contest the action in court.
Congress passed the resolution last month with the intention of halting the nation’s most aggressive effort to phase out gas-powered vehicles. Additionally, Trump signed legislation to remove state laws that limit truck emissions of nitrogen oxide, which causes smog, and tailpipe emissions from specific automobiles.
During a White House ceremony when he signed the resolutions, Trump referred to California’s restrictions as “crazy.”
It occurs as the Republican president and Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom of California are at odds over Trump’s decision to send troops to Los Angeles in response to anti-immigration demonstrations. It’s the most recent in a series of disputes between the Trump administration and California, which leans Democratic, over topics like financing for electric vehicle chargers, LGBTQ+ youth rights, and tariffs.
Rob Bonta, the Democratic Attorney General of the state, revealed the most recent complaint during a news conference in California. The state is already embroiled in over two dozen lawsuits contesting moves taken by the Trump administration.
The three resolutions that Trump signed will prevent California from enacting a law that would phase out gas-powered vehicles and stop selling new ones by 2035. They would also repeal regulations that reduce truck exhaust emissions and phase out the sale of medium- and heavy-duty diesel automobiles.
Despite their strained relationship, Trump made some remarkably nice remarks about Elon Musk’s company during his White House remarks, but he also voiced questions about the performance and dependability of electric vehicles.
Trump also used the East Room ceremony to discuss windmills, which he said “are killing our country,” the possibility of being electrocuted by an electric boat if it sank, and whether he would risk a shark attack by jumping as the boat went down, in remarks that frequently veered off topic.
The president declared, “I’ll take electrocution every single day.”
Regarding automobiles, Trump stated that while he prefers combustion engines, “If you want to buy electric, you can buy electric.”
The proprietor of Kent Kwik convenience stores, Bill Kent, stated, “This gives us freedom.” The California regulations would have required him to create “infrastructure that frankly, is extremely expensive and doesn’t give you any return,” Kent said during a White House speech.
Major automakers are represented by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which praised Trump’s move.
According to a statement from the group’s president and CEO, John Bozzella, “everyone agreed that these EV sales mandates were never achievable and wildly unrealistic.”
California authorities and Newsom, a likely Democratic presidential candidate in 2028, argue that the federal government’s actions are unlawful and that the state intends to file a lawsuit.
Trump’s action, according to Newsom, was part of his “all-out assault” on California.
Trump has promised to increase oil and gas exploration and revitalize American auto production, which coincides with the signatures.
The action comes after earlier actions taken by the Trump administration to repeal regulations intended to safeguard water and air and lower climate change-causing emissions.
On Wednesday, the EPA suggested removing regulations that restrict greenhouse gas emissions from coal and natural gas-fired power plants.
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The resolutions’ signature, according to Dan Becker of the Center for Biological Diversity, was “Trump’s latest betrayal of democracy.”
According to a statement from Becker, “signing this bill is a flagrant abuse of the law to reward Big Oil and Big Auto corporations at the expense of everyday people’s health and their wallets.”
For many years, California, which has some of the worst air pollution in the country, has been able to ask the EPA for exceptions, which have allowed it to enact higher emissions regulations than the federal government.
In 2022, Democratic President Joe Biden restored California’s enforcement of its rules, which Trump had taken away during his first term. Trump hasn’t attempted to rescind it yet.
Republicans have long opposed those waivers, and earlier this year they decided to try to thwart the rules through the Congressional Review Act, a measure designed to enhance congressional supervision of federal agency decisions.
This is true even though the independent congressional watchdog, the U.S. Government Accountability Office, concluded that the Congressional Review Act does not allow for the legal blocking of California’s requirements. The lawmaker from the Senate concurred with that conclusion.
With almost 11% of the US auto market, California has considerable influence over industry trends. California’s regulation to phase out the sale of new gas-powered vehicles was adopted by about a dozen states.
