The Democratic California government is preparing a lawsuit against the federal government after the Republican-led Senate voted to repeal the state’s electric vehicle mandate. This vote on Thursday aimed to roll back crucial Biden-era waivers that allowed California to set its own emissions standards, specifically undoing a recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approval for the state to phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2035. This action is perceived by California officials as a direct challenge to the state’s environmental authority.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom vehemently denounced the Senate’s move, calling the vote “illegal” and accusing Republicans of defying decades of precedent. He stated that “Trump Republicans” are trying to “make America smoggy again,” undoing environmental work from the eras of Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, and ceding the nation’s economic future to China. Newsom pledged to fight this “unconstitutional attack” on California in court, emphasizing the state’s unwavering commitment.
Further solidifying the state’s position, California Attorney General Rob Bonta condemned the “weaponization of the Congressional Review Act” as a “partisan campaign” against California’s environmental protections. He labeled this misuse of the Act as unlawful, asserting that California would sue to defend its waivers. California Sen. Adam
Schiff also weighed in, accusing Republicans of “blowing a hole in the filibuster for the oil industry” and warning that this tactic, if successful, would be repeatedly utilized.
