- The EPA has struck down the 2009 Endangerment Finding.
- It guts greenhouse gas emission standards and credits.
- Government claims move will save Americans $1.3 trillion.
The Environmental Protection Agency has announced sweeping rollbacks in what it’s calling the “single largest deregulatory action in U.S. history.” This is a huge development as they’re eliminating the Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding as well as “all subsequent federal GHG emission standards for all vehicles and engines of model years 2012 to 2027 and beyond.”
The EPA said the 2009 Endangerment Finding was used to help justify the “illegal push towards electric vehicle mandates” under the Obama and Biden administrations. They went on to claim it drove up vehicle costs, while also reducing consumer choice.
More: EPA Just Killed Modern Cars’ Most Controversial Feature
Besides gutting emission standards, the EPA said the move eliminates off-cycle credits and the “almost universally hated” engine start-stop feature in vehicles. They claimed the changes will save Americans over $1.3 trillion by removing regulatory requirements to measure, report, certify, and comply with federal GHG emission standards as well as other related attributes.
That equates to over $2,400 per vehicle, but it also includes some questionable math such as “avoided costs of purchasing equipment related to EVs.”
The EPA said the decision came after careful consideration as well as a reevaluation of the Endangerment Finding and Clean Air Act. A review of the latter led them to conclude the act did not “provide statutory authority for EPA to prescribe motor vehicle and engine emission standards in the manner previously utilized, including for the purpose of addressing global climate change.”
The agency went on to say this means there was “no legal basis” for the following Endangerment Finding and its resulting regulations.
The EPA believes a decision of the Endangerment Finding’s magnitude lies solely with Congress due to its “sweeping economic and policy consequences.” The irony won’t be lost on many as the Trump administration has bypassed Congress to enact steep tariffs, bomb other countries, and overthrow a foreign government.
In a statement, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said “The Endangerment Finding has been the source of 16 years of consumer choice restrictions and trillions of dollars in hidden costs for Americans.” He went on to say, “The Trump EPA is strictly following the letter of the law, returning commonsense to policy, delivering consumer choice to Americans and advancing the American Dream.”
What Is The Endangerment Finding?
At the heart of the issue is the Endangerment Finding, which found current and projected levels of six key greenhouse gases – including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride – “threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations.”
More importantly, the EPA determined emissions from vehicles and their engines contribute to greenhouse gas pollution that threatens public health and welfare. These findings kicked off a series of developments including stricter emissions standards and a push for more efficient engines as well as alternative powertrains.
