California abandons its electric car mandate

The California agency that sets emissions standards eliminated its electric car purchase mandate for private companies and relaxed purchase bans for the public sector.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) voted to remove the regulations, assuring, however, that the changes would "help owners continue zero-emission progress."

The removal comes after the regulatory agency tried unsuccessfully to gain the backing of the Biden administration, during its final days, to impose stricter green standards than the federal government.

Green initiatives are one of the fronts that Gov. Gavin Newsom is keeping open with the White House, to position himself as the resistance against the MAGA agenda. During the so-called Climate Week, held this week in New York, the Democrat again criticized the administration's energy policy and referred specifically to trucks, assuring that "zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) made up nearly 23% of new medium- and heavy-duty truck sales in California in 2024."

Since taking office, President Trump reversed multiple initiatives of his predecessor to boost electric vehicles, such as freezing a multibillion-dollar program to install electric vehicle charging stations across the country.

In California, specifically, the Administration suspended permits that gave the state freedom to set its own regulations. Last month it sued the state, claiming it continued to impose mandates of its own despite the White House's withdrawal of the permit.