Biden EPA Introduces Highest-Ever Emissions Standards to Force Adoption of Electric Vehicles

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Biden Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued all-new vehicle pollution emissions standards on Wednesday that are the toughest ever on record in a bid to increase sales of electric vehicles (EVs) to offset the effects of climate change. 

The standards, proposed on Wednesday and announced by the White House, will apply to car model years 2027 through 2032, and would “protect public health.”  

The goal of the new standards, Biden officials said, would be to achieve carbon emission reductions of approximately 10 million tons by 2055; save motorists $12,000 on average over the lifetime of their vehicles; accelerate the transition to “clean vehicles,” and reduce oil imports by 20 billion barrels. 

“Cars and truck manufacturers have made clear that the future of transportation is electric. The market is moving,” the White House said in a statement. “As a car enthusiast and self-proclaimed car guy, President Biden is seizing the moment. His Investing in America agenda is expanding domestic manufacturing and accelerating adoption of zero-emission vehicles, including battery electric, plug-in hybrid electric, and fuel cell electric vehicles.” 

The current standards proposed by the EPA could result in a whopping 67 percent of new passenger vehicles being electric by 2032, according to White House projections. Also, between 25 and 50 percent of heavier vehicles – such as buses, garbage trucks, and freight tractor trailers – could be electric within that time frame as well. 

Critics – such as Myron Ebell, Director of the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Center for Energy and Environment – argue that tougher emissions standards for gas-powered vehicles are being implemented mainly to artificially increase their prices and drive motorists towards purchasing EVs. 

“The Biden administration is trying to bend every federal rule they can find to force people into buying EVs,” he said. “There is still a market that allows drivers to buy the vehicles of their choice, but government coercion is rapidly limiting those choices. If Biden policies are successful, we will soon have a choice between buying an EV and not being able to afford a vehicle at all.” 

As of 2022 sales of internal combustion engine powered cars represented 93 per cent of all new car sales; currently, many experts consider EVs to be far more expensive – and in ways less efficient, currently – than their gas-powered brethren. 

The average cost of a compact gas-powered car in 2022 was $26,101; in contrast, the average cost of an EV was $64,338. The average range of gasoline powered vehicles in 2021 was 403 miles, as opposed to the 234-mile range of EVs produced in that year. 

“Yet another draconian rule from the Biden Admin,” Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) said. “From gas stoves to vehicles, their anti-American energy policies put our nation on a dangerous path. It’s time for the government to stop over-regulating our lives and protect our energy independence.”