Senator Cramer Cosponsors Legislation to Overturn EPA’s Onerous EV Rulemakings

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized two rulemakings, placing burdensome new emission standards for light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicles. Despite American consumers largely rejecting electric vehicles (EVs) because they are too expensive or do not meet their needs, these rulemakings effectively force the transition toward EVs.

U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), who opposes the Biden administration’s federal mandates on EVs, joined his colleagues in introducing two Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions of disapproval on both of the EPA’s final rules.

The first resolution, led by U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE), overturns the Biden administration’s strict, onerous rule regarding multi-pollutant emissions standards for light and medium duty vehicles. By requiring the phase-in of emissions standards for criteria pollutants and greenhouse gases for light and medium duty vehicles, the EPA is fundamentally pushing to transition to electric vehicles by requiring the phase out of the internal combustion engine.

“The Biden administration is doing everything in its power to regulate gas vehicles out of existence and push EVs on Americans,” said Cramer. “This EV mandate conveniently ignores the realities that EVs are not ready for mass adoption, and consumers do not even want them. You simply cannot force Americans to want something just because the government decides they should.”

The second resolution of disapproval, led by U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK), pertains to the EPA’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for heavy duty vehicles beginning in 2027. The regulation covers a number of vehicles from school buses and garbage trucks to 18-wheelers. 

“The new greenhouse gas emission regulation for trucks is the perfect example of how out of touch the Biden administration is with reality,” said Cramer. “The weight and space batteries take up to go less than 200-miles will grind our supply chain to a halt. You need two electric trucks to carry the cargo of one diesel truck and they’ll need to refuel eight times more often which takes over five hours to do– not to mention the electric grid upgrades required or dependence on China for EV manufacturing. This rule needs to be sent to the junkyard.”

Last month, Senator Cramer joined more than 130 of his colleagues in sending a bicameral letter to President Joe Biden and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Shalanda Young, calling for the rejection of EPA’s de facto mandate for electric vehicles. Shortly after the EPA announced the rules, Senator Cramer joined his colleagues in introducing the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act, which would prevent the EPA’s de facto mandate of electric vehicles.