Biden administration to ease emissions requirements, reports say

Multiple reports say that U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is set to propose lighter annual requirements on emissions and electric vehicle (EV) sales, expected to be made public next month.

The Biden administration is expected to propose easing Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements on emissions and EV sales, according to two sources who spoke with Reuters, and a separate report from the New York Times citing three people familiar with the matter.

The original requirements, proposed by the EPA last April, recommended the requirement of a 56-percent decrease in new vehicle emissions between 2027 and 2032. Automakers were also expected to make 60 percent of their vehicle sales electric by 2030, reaching 67 percent by 2032 to meet the stricter emissions requirements.

In response to the proposals, multiple automakers and the United Automotive Workers (UAW) union encouraged the Biden administration to ease requirements, saying that EVs are still too expensive for the average U.S. consumer, and adding that more time is needed to build out a charging infrastructure.

The UAW told Biden that the EPA proposal should increase strictness “more gradually,” adding that EV adoption should take place over a “greater period of time.” Others in the auto industry have echoed the claims, while much of the sector has also warned of slowing EV demand.

Under the revised regulations, which are expected to be made public as soon as next month, the EPA would slow emissions requirements through 2030, instead ramping them up specifically between 2030 and 2032.

The White House last week met with the Alliance for Automotive Innocation and the EPA to discuss the regulations, and Tesla had a separate meeting with the White House on February 9, according to the reports.

The EPA says the proposed regulation changes are currently under interagency review. According to an EPA spokesperson, the White House is looking to create a rule that is “readily achievable, secures reductions in dangerous air and climate pollution and ensures economic benefits.”

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. consumers still have little experience with EVs

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