The Trump Administration is looking to roll back stricter emissions standards put in place by the Biden administration covering both light-duty passenger cars and heavy-duty commercial trucks.
The EPA said Wednesday in a press release that it was targeting greenhouse-gas emissions standards for model years 2027-2032, as well as rules further restricting smog-forming nitrous-oxide (NOx) emissions from heavy-duty trucks, which the Trump agency argued “provided the foundation for the Biden-Harris electric vehicle mandate” while making vehicles more expensive.
2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV
No such mandate was put in place by the previous administration, although the stricter emissions rules for light-duty vehicles are expected to lead to increased market share for electric vehicles. When the rule was finalized in 2024, the EPA estimated that it would cut fleet emissions by 50% by 2032 compared to 2027 levels, and that between 35% and 56% of new vehicles sold between 2030 and 2032 would need to be electric to hit that target. Although a higher adoption of plug-in hybrids would have allowed a lower percentage of fully electric vehicles.
The heavy-duty truck emissions rules now being attacked by the Trump Administration were announced in 2022 and are 80% stricter than prior standards. At the time, the EPA estimated this would result in up to 2,900 fewer premature deaths annually, 1.1 million fewer lost school days for children, and $29 billion in annual net benefits. But theses rules don’t mandate EVs either.
Freightliner eCascadia electric semi-truck
Weakening emissions standards has been a priority for the second Trump Administration, which is even conflicting with policies and talking points from the last Trump Administration, in trying to make cleaner cars seem bad.
In addition to emissions rules that could encourage more electric vehicles, the administration has acted to freeze federal EV charger funding—something automakers aren’t happy about. California has vowed to continue its charging infrastructure buildout whether these funds remain available or not.