Hours after President Donald Trump signed a package of resolutions to block California’s vehicle emission standards, California fired back with legal action.
On June 12, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, and California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit alleging that the actions are an illegal use of the Congressional Review Act (CRA).
In a statement, Newsom accused the president of “destroying” the state’s clean air and “America’s global competitiveness.”
Specifically, the lawsuit seeks to retain the Golden State’s Clean Air Act waivers, which allow California to enforce stricter vehicle emissions standards than those mandated by the federal government.
The resolutions signed by Trump on June 12, passed earlier this year by Congress, rescind a waiver granted by the Environmental Protection Agency in December 2023 that allowed California to enforce its Advanced Clean Cars II rule. The rule requires that 80 percent of new vehicle sales in the state be zero-emission by 2035.
During a White House ceremony during which he signed the resolutions, Trump said California’s regulations were “crazy.”
“It’s been a disaster for this country,” he said. “We officially rescue the U.S. auto industry from destruction by terminating California’s electric vehicle mandate once and for all.”
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents major automakers, applauded Trump’s action.
Alliance for Automotive Innovation CEO John Bozzella said in a statement that EV sales mandates were “never achievable and wildly unrealistic.”
“Worse than unachievable—these EV mandates were going to be harmful. Harmful to auto affordability, to consumer choice, to industry competitiveness and to economic activity,” Bozzella said. “Customers don’t want the government telling them what kind of car to buy.”
In a statement, Bonta’s office said 10 other states—Colorado, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington—are joining the lawsuit.
Newsom’s office said in a statement that California has received more than 100 Clean Air Act waivers since 1970 and has never seen one revoked.
Both the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office and Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough previously ruled that EPA waivers are not covered by the CRA’s expedited legislative process.
The governor’s statement said California, the nation’s most populous state, continues to struggle with low air quality, citing “unique geography” that particularly affects the San Joaquin Valley and the Los Angeles air basin.
“People in these areas suffer unusually high rates of asthma and cardiopulmonary disease. Zero-emission vehicles are a critical part of the plan to protect Californians,” Newsom said.
“Over the last 50 years, the state’s clean air efforts have saved $250 billion in health costs through reduced illness, including reducing diesel-related cancer risk nearly 80 percent,” Newsom’s office said in the statement.
“If upheld, President Trump’s illegal rollback of these regulations would cost Californian taxpayers an estimated $45 billion in health care costs.”
On the same day, Newsom announced he would be signing a new executive order directing state agencies to update clean vehicle policies, prioritize state purchases from manufacturers complying with California rules, and accelerate zero-emission vehicle adoption.
