U.S Government proposes new standards to protect public health and increase energy security

Biden-⁠Harris Administration proposes new standards to protect public health that will save consumers money, and increase energy security. 

The Biden-Harris Administration has announced new proposed vehicle pollution standards to make all vehicles, including gas-powered cars and heavy-duty trucks, cleaner and more efficient.

The proposed standards would protect public health by cutting nearly 10 billion tons of CO2 emissions – twice the annual U.S. emissions today.  

Consumer costs would be lowered by leveraging accelerated adoption of technologies that reduce fuel and maintenance costs alongside pollution, the proposed standards would save the average consumer $12,000 over the lifetime of the vehicle.

The proposals would also result in approximately $12 billion in reduced reliance on oil imports. 

To accelerate the clean vehicle transition, the EPA’s approach is technology-neutral, meaning that better-designed gas vehicles, hybrids, fuel cell vehicles, and other innovations could all be used to meet stricter standards. But with EV technology getting better and cheaper every day, and consumer demand rising rapidly, many manufacturers would likely rely on fully electric vehicles for compliance. 

These standards build on the generational investments secured by the Biden-Harris Administration that will ensure the nation’s transportation systems are clean, affordable, equitable, and Made in America.

In the first year of his Administration, President Biden set a goal that at least 50 percent of all new passenger cars and light trucks sold in 2030 be zero-emission vehicles. A year later, President Biden joined countries around the world in targeting that 100 percent of all new medium- and heavy-duty vehicles sold in 2040 be zero-emission vehicles, with an interim 30 percent sales target for these vehicles in 2030.

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