Virginia Senate Democrats on Tuesday defeated several Republican efforts to repeal the so-called “clean car” law which aims to reduce carbon pollution by adopting California’s strict rules for vehicle emissions.
Environmental groups, who say adoption of the standards was one of the most important steps Virginia has taken to address climate change applauded Tuesday’s result.
“Today’s vote shows that the attacks led by (Governor Glenn) Youngkin against fundamental Virginia climate laws are a dead end and that he should side with advancing pollution, not oppose it,” said Walton Shepherd, Virginia policy director. for the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Republicans tried unsuccessfully last year to repeal the 2021 law, and Youngkin vowed to try again after California in August he was on his way to require all new cars, trucks and SUVs to be electric or hydrogen powered by 2035. Under California standards, drivers can keep their existing gas-powered cars or buy used ones.
Opponents of following California say its goals are unattainable and that the electric vehicles that will be required, and their batteries, are too expensive for many families.
Some Republican senators called on their colleagues to at least consider delaying implementation of the rules.
“I hope there is at least a way that we can make amends for this. Do something so that reasonable judgment can guide the day here,” said Senator Richard Stuart.
The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources eventually introduced several similar repeal bills before voting the consolidated group on an 8-7 party-line vote.
The “clean car” law initially adopted two years ago, at a time when the state government was under complete Democratic control. The measure that the then Gob. Ralph Northam signed the law was a priority for environmental advocates at the time. It will require that from 2024 a certain percentage of new passenger vehicles sold by manufacturers be electric or hybrid electric.
The mechanism to reach the mandatory vehicle sales threshold, which would start at approximately 8% in 2024 and then increase each year, involves adopting California vehicle emissions standards. California has had the authority to set its own rules for decades under a waiver from the federal Clean Air Act.
The program applies to manufacturers, not car dealers. Non-compliant manufacturers can purchase credits from others who have exceeded the target.
Proponents of the change argued that some automakers prioritize shipping their electric vehicles, or EVs, to states that use California standards. They said that has meant supply in Virginia is not meeting demand, especially outside the Washington suburbs.
The hope was that the law would make it easier and more likely for Virginians to choose cleaner cars and, in turn, help reduce pollution from the transportation sector, which according to federal data is the largest source of carbon dioxide. heat-trapping carbon in Virginia.
When the Virginia law was adopted, opponents argued that the Commonwealth should not tie its future to California.
In August, after the California Air Resources Board further tightened its standards, state officials confirmed the change would apply to Virginia. Youngkin promised to push for a repeal, saying he would work to “stop this ridiculous edict from being imposed on Virginians.”
“As the governor stated, Democrats in Virginia have outsourced energy policy decision-making to unelected bureaucrats in California,” Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter said in a statement.
The governor has said that he generally applauds efforts to move toward cleaner energy sources, but believes that the methods adopted under Democratic control in previous years are too rigid.