Biden's New Tailpipe Emissions Rule Resets to Obama Administration Standards

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday announced new federal greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for passenger cars and light trucks for model years 2023 through 2026. A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule summary announced the finalized standards. According to the rule summary, the new standards are consistent with the "Strengthening American Leadership in Clean Cars and Trucks" Executive Order signed by President Joe Biden in August 2021.

An article for The Washington Post, by Dino Grandoni, Faiz Siddiqui, and Anna Phillips, provides more details on the announcement, headlining a comparison between the newly finalized rule and the actions of the previous administration. To describe the details of the new rule, the article includes this summary:

The standards for model years 2023 to 2026, signed Monday morning by EPA Administrator Michael Regan, require that cars, SUVs and pickup trucks release an average of 161 grams of carbon dioxide per mile by 2026. The new Biden standards are equivalent to an average of roughly 55 miles per gallon by 2026 in laboratory testing. The average figure appearing on window stickers — and advertised EPA mileage — would be 40 mpg.

While those standards appear drastic, they don't erase the rollback of emissions standards imposed by the Trump administration. Obama-era rules "would have achieved nearly the same emission cuts a year earlier," according to the article.

The article also notes that the new emissions standards fall short of the lofty ambitions of the Build Back Better bill, which was delt a final blow by U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) a few days earlier.

The new limits on tailpipe emissions for the next four years mark President Biden’s biggest step yet to tackle climate change, but the move comes as critical components of his plan for an all-electric future just suffered a major blow on Capitol Hill. On Sunday, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced he would not support his party’s Build Back Better plan, which would have provided billions in federal support for building charging stations and encouraging consumers to buy electric vehicles.