Trump administration to slash clean car rules aimed at cutting climate emissions

President Donald Trump's administration finalized on Monday the rollback of US fuel economy standards, ending a mandate that compelled automakers to produce more expensive electric vehicles. The new standards require an average fleet fuel economy of 34.9 miles per gallon (6.74 liters per 100km) by model year 2031, a figure already met two years ago according to the rule's own data.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated that the rule change eliminates an "illegal mandate" and will reduce the average cost of new vehicles by $1,300, saving $138 billion over the next five years, and prevent over 300,000 serious injuries while saving 1,900 lives by encouraging new car sales. The change was welcomed by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a lobby group that includes major carmakers, who described the final rule as a "course correction" from the unrealistic and demand-ignorant standards set under the previous administration.

This move follows other recent actions by Trump and Republican allies to eliminate incentives for electric car production, at a time when China leads the global market. The administration also ended federal limits on car emissions and repealed EV tax credits, while blocking California's plan to ban new gasoline cars by 2035. The rule revises the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, established in 1975 to address the Arab oil embargo, with the aim of maximizing feasible mileage per gallon.

The change is partly symbolic, as the Biden-era updates to CAFE were rendered ineffective by the Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, which eliminated penalties for automakers failing to meet the standards. However, the new rule retroactively lowers standards to the 2022 model year, allowing automakers to earn credits for exceeding weaker targets over the past four years, providing a cushion if a future government increases standards.

Environmental critics, including the Center for Biological Diversity, denounced the rollback, arguing that the administration unlawfully disregards clean technology feasibility and the millions of fuel-efficient vehicles already on the road. The US, the world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has set a goal of 50.4 mpg by 2031, which experts estimate could save 64 billion gallons of gas by 2050 and deliver $35 billion in consumer savings.