California set to ban sales of new gas-powered cars by 2035
California regulators are set to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035 — a move that was expected to set the pace for a national and international shift to electric vehicles.
The California Air Resources Board Thurs🐎day to ඣapprove the sweeping Advanced Clean Cars II that would also gradually phase out gas-operated vehicles in the state over the next dozen years.
Under the measure, 35% of vehicles manufactured in 2026 anജd sold in the state would be required to be zero emission, up from 12% percent to⭕day.
The green quotas would increase to 51% in 2028 and 68% in 2030 before being𒀰 universal🦂ly applied to all 2035 cars, SUVs and pickup truck models. Used vehicles that operate on gasoline would be allowed to stay on the road and be resold.
The amendments to the act are consistent with a 2020 from California Gov. Gavin Newsom that aimed to “put the state on a path to carbon neutrality by 2045.”
“The proposal will substantially reduce air pollutants that threaten public health and cause climate change,” the CARB said.
Board member Daniel Sperling CNN he was “99.9%” confident the measure would pass. If approved in Sacramento, the regulations would be submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency for a final rubber stamp.
“This is monumental,” Sperling reportedly said. “This is the most important thing that CARB has done in the last 30 years. It’s important not just for California, but it’s important for the country and the world.”
“The car companies see what’s happening in China, in Europe,” Sperling told the outlet. “Many of them have already made announcements about how they’re converting totally to electric vehicles.”
On Tuesday, Toyota said it recognized the state’s authority to set vehicle emissions standards under the US Clean Air Act, after it and other automakers sided with the Trump administration’s 2019 efforts to strip California of setting emissions standards.
The EPA restored California’s ability to set its own standards — which are generally followed by many more than a dozen other states — in March.
The vote on the California measure came a week after President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act which invests $369 billion in green infrastructure with the aim of reducing ꩵemissions by 40% of 2005 l🎶evels by the end of the decade.
With AP wires