House votes to pass bill that would block federal electric vehicle mandates

A bill to kill the federal EV mandates passed the House Wednesday in a 221-197 vote. Five Democrats joined Republicans in voting for the bill.

The EPA proposed aggressive tailpipe emissions standards earlier this year that would, if finalized, would require 67% of new cars and small SUVs to be electric, along with a large portion of heavy-duty vehicles, by 2032.

Reps. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., and Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., along with more than a dozen House Republicans, introduced the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act, which would prohibit regulations that mandate the use of any specific type of technology or limit availability of new vehicles based on engine type.

“If Joe Biden believes EVs are so wonderful, he shouldn’t have to force us to buy them by executive fiat,” said Daniel Turner, executive director of Power The Future, said in a statement praising the bill’s passage.

Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., introduced companion legislation in October.

Should it pass the Senate, the White House has already stated that President Joe Biden will veto the measure.

The EPA proposed emissions standards, the White House said in a veto-threat statement, are “projected to save Americans $12,000 over the lifetime of a new light-duty vehicle by accelerating adoption of technologies that reduce fuel and maintenance costs alongside pollution.”