- Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Virginia would no longer follow California’s emissions regulations
- Most northeastern states continue to follow California’s regulations and their electric vehicle regulations
- The states in the loose coalition also include Nevada and Minnesota, minus the electric vehicle regulation
Virginia will stop following California’s stricter emissions standardsGov. Glenn Youngkin announced last week that this would put the state on track to end sales of nearly all new internal combustion cars by 2035.
All states have the option of following California’s emissions rules instead of federal standards, and Virginia passed a law to do so in 2021. That could create legal challenges for with Youngkin leaving the ranks of states that follow California’s emissions rules, reports the Virginia Mercury (through Axios).
In a statement, Youngkin said an opinion from Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares shows that the law, as written, does not require the state to follow the latest round of standards, known as Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC II). So Youngkin plans to revert Virginia to federal emissions standards by January 1, 2025.
ACC II zero-emission vehicle sales target
Virginia has previously encountered some challenges in adopting the standards, but it has kept them until now. The loss of the governor’s office in 2022 could play a key role. Democrats have full control of the legislature and governor’s office in 2021 when California’s electric vehicle regulation law passes.
California regulations essentially require 35% of all new vehicles sold to be battery electric or plug-in hybrid by 2026, on track toward the goal 100% of cars and light trucks will be fully electric by 2035. The acceleration, as defined by ACC II, starts with a 17% requirement for the 2023 model year, increasing to 19.5% for the 2024 model year and 22% for the 2025 model year.
To date, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Maryland, and DC have adopted electric vehicle regulations—13 states. states plus DC That divided America’s auto market into two roughly equal parts. Connecticut and Maine have delayed through the EV mandate section, but they are expected to comply with it.
Audi Q8 E-Tron 2024
Nevada and Minnesota have followed California’s emissions rules up to this point, but so far no state has officially adopted the ACC II rules and regulated the sale of their electric vehicles.
However, electric vehicle sales are not necessarily subject to mandates. A 2021 survey found three out of five states with most streetcars being off-duty at the time.
California also has it EV commercial truck mandate, but fewer states have adopted it. That mandate calls for ramping up electric vehicle sales starting in 2024, with sales of all-electric trucks by 2045.
