On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed three congressional resolutions aimed at overturning California’s aggressive statewide efforts to adopt electric vehicles and phase out diesel engines. The measures, approved by Congress last month, were formalized during a morning event at the White House and are expected to reshape national automotive and environmental policy.
During the event, Trump declared, “We officially rescued the automotive industry from destruction by terminating the California electric mandate once and for all.”
The resolutions target California’s plan to phase out the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035 and significantly limit the use of diesel engines. The state’s policies, which 11 others had adopted, were granted a waiver by the Biden administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in December. Trump’s actions effectively revoke that authority.
Major automakers, including General Motors and Toyota, had lobbied against California’s EV rules, citing challenges with manufacturing vehicles tailored to different regional standards. However, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) welcomed Trump’s move, arguing that Congress, not individual states, should set national automotive policies.
Both NADA and the American Truck Dealers (ATD) released a statement, “California’s regulations would have reduced consumer choice and raised prices in the showroom for new and used cars.”
Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned the reversal, saying, “Big polluters and the right-wing propaganda machine have succeeded in buying off the Republican Party.” The Biden administration had backed California’s authority to set stricter emissions standards than the federal government. Trump’s move marks a significant policy reversal with implications for the future of national EV adoption.
Notably, California accounts for approximately 11% of the U.S. auto market, giving its regulations significant influence in shaping nationwide trends. The Congressional Review Act was used to undo the state policies, despite warnings from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office and the Senate parliamentarian that the maneuver may not be legally valid.
The auto industry, environmental groups, and legal experts are now bracing for a high-stakes court battle, likely to decide how much influence individual states can exert over the future of vehicle emissions—and who will drive America’s transition to electric mobility.
