Trump executive order targets California electric vehicle waiver

By Blanca Begert, Debra Kahn | 01/22/2025 06:08 AM EST

It would be the second time President Donald Trump has attempted to withdraw the state’s unique ability to exceed Clean Air Act standards.

A pair of Chargepoint electric vehicle chargers stand available at a Volkswagen dealership.

A pair of Chargepoint electric vehicle chargers stand available at a Volkswagen dealership March 17, 2024, in Denver. David Zalubowski/AP

President Donald Trump on his first day in office Monday issued an executive order vowing to terminate California’s ability to phase out gas-powered passenger cars, a major plank of the state’s nation-leading climate and air pollution rules.

Trump’s executive order Monday evening included a policy directive to terminate, “where appropriate, state emissions waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline-powered automobiles.”

It’s a reference to California, which has unique authority under the Clean Air Act to exceed federal pollution standards for automobiles and other mobile emissions sources. Twelve other states are signed on to follow California’s rule to ban gas-powered car sales by 2035.

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The order was part of a flurry of executive actions Trump took Monday on a host of energy issues, including withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change, lifting the Biden administration’s pause on new liquid natural gas permits and expanding and expediting oil drilling in Alaska.

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