Summary
The Biden administration will allow California to ban new gas-powered car sales by 2035, with 11 other states following. This uses a Clean Air Act waiver permitting stricter state-level pollution controls to curb greenhouse gas emissions.
Trump plans to revoke the waiver, roll back EV tax credits, and fight California’s climate policies, potentially sparking legal battles.
California, leading the U.S. in EV adoption, aims to “Trump-proof” its agenda, bolstered by automaker deals and strong market influence.
The ban could accelerate EV investments, shaping nearly half of the U.S. auto market and global climate policy trends.
2035 is so far away, it’s basically just postering at this point.
It makes a difference - corporations move and adapt slowly. They now know in 10 years, the ICE market will probably be completely dead in big chunks of the US market, and if they aren’t competitive by then they’ll lose a lot of market share
It’s not enough to sell electric models by 2035 - they need to be established as good electric manufacturers by then. It’ll push them to move the electric transition forward, either giving up on hydrogen or speeding up their plans
It’s not the greatest timeframe, but it’s not nothing
According to this article, some automotive companies have already stopped further research and development on ICE engines.
https://www.hotcars.com/car-companies-no-longer-investing-in-ice/
People used to say that about 2025 too
And look at how many politicians and businesses have gone back on their promises in the past decade.
Better do something than do nothing.
Just posturing is right. Why not in 5 years? Why wait til we can almost name a new generation of adults?
Probably because the more aggressive the timeline, the more willingness to fight rather than just adapt
Personally, I’d like to see more of a transition - maybe a tax that starts small and quickly scales into something crazy over the course of the decade or something else to heavily motivate early compliance
This isn’t nothing though, it’s mostly just late. Paris did something similar and is already reaping the rewards
I don’t live in California, but I’m going to guess to expand the charger network more.