Newsom Admin Responds to US Senate Vote to Overturn California's Clean Car & Truck Rules
On May 22, the US Senate, in defiance of the Government Accountability Office and Senate Parliamentarian, invoked the Congressional Review Act to overturn California's Advanced Clean Cars II Omnibus and Advanced Clean Trucks regulations. VX News excerpts the response from CARB Chair Liane Randolph, CA Attorney General Rob Bonta, and CA Governor Gavin Newsom who vow litigation to uphold the state's nation-leading clean air rules and underscore the economic advantages of advancing zero-emissions vehicles as global markets press forward on decarbonizing transportation.
“We’re here today to send a pretty simple message: we intend to sue the Trump administration over the unlawful use of the Congressional Review Act—also known as the CRA—to upend our Advanced Clean Cars II Omnibus and Advanced Clean Trucks regulations.”
Liane Randolph: These votes are a direct attack on the health of Californians. As Secretary Garcia explained, the Air Resources Board has been working since before the Clean Air Act was adopted at the federal level. The waivers that are provided by the federal Clean Air Act have been critical to protecting the health of Californians. Since the Clean Air Act was adopted in 1970, the U.S. EPA has granted California more than 100 waivers across bipartisan administrations to pursue clean air.
California has repeatedly demonstrated that our standards are feasible and the rules have been successful. The rules that the waivers allowed California to put into place have been successful, from the catalytic converter to the check engine light that lets you know your system is not working properly. Those regulations have brought significant benefits, including reducing many pollutant levels between 75% and 99%, even as the population has increased and vehicle use has quadrupled.
We are not done. We don’t have the luxury of being done with Clean Air Act work. Five of the ten cities with the worst air pollution nationwide are in California. Ten million Californians in the San Joaquin Valley and Los Angeles air basins currently live under what is known as severe non-attainment conditions. Air pollution is a silent killer, and we have a legal and moral obligation to continue to pursue clean air.
These rules collectively not only protect individual public health and make individual lives better, but they also have an economic benefit. These rules collectively represent $4 billion in health care cost savings.
Despite this disruption brought on by the federal government, California remains steadfast in our commitment to continue to work with the industry and with communities to drive the innovation that we need to see to achieve these rules.
With the determination, perseverance, and innovation emblematic of the state of California, we will overcome this unconstitutional attempt to stand in the way of our fundamental right to breathe clean air.
Now I would like to introduce Attorney General Rob Bonta.
Rob Bonta: Before we dive in, I want to express my gratitude to Governor Gavin Newsom and California Secretary for Environmental Protection, Jana Garcia, for their leadership as we navigate this federal administration. I’d also like to thank my team, in particular our Natural Resources Law and Environment sections, for their dedication and tenacity during these volatile times.
We’re here today to send a pretty simple message: we intend to sue the Trump administration over the unlawful use of the Congressional Review Act—also known as the CRA—to upend our Advanced Clean Cars II Omnibus and Advanced Clean Trucks regulations. If it’s the next suit that we bring, it will be our 23rd lawsuit against the Trump administration, which has shown he is a repeat offender when it comes to violating the law. These unlawful and unprecedented CRA resolutions purport to invalidate Clean Air Act waivers that allow California to enforce state-level emission standards. These resolutions directly contradict the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office and the Senate Parliamentarian, who both determined that the CRA’s process doesn’t apply to the EPA waivers.
The CRA has been in place for 30 years. It has never—ever—not once been used to apply to a waiver. California has received approximately 100 waivers since waivers have been given, and the CRA has never been applied to any of those waivers before. So this is unprecedented.
To be clear, these waivers have never been subject to the CRA under either Democratic or Republican leadership. This is a workaround for Trump to punish California for defying his efforts to bring us backward.
Our clean vehicles program strategically ties significant economic benefits to lower vehicle emissions and clean air initiatives. It’s a win-win for our economy, which is now, yes, I’m going to say it again—the fourth largest in the world—and our environment and that is no coincidence. The federal government’s overreach is illogical. It’s politically motivated, and it comes at the expense of Californians’ lives and livelihoods. The President and his administration are attempting to trample on our authority to maintain longstanding clean vehicle standards and keep our air breathable, and they’re sacrificing high-paying green jobs in the process.
We’re not going to let that happen, which brings us here today.
Our lawsuit will be about ensuring California can enforce its state laws. Under the Clean Air Act, California is allowed to set its own emission requirements independent from the EPA’s regulations. Waivers granted by the EPA have allowed us to improve our standards—standards that are vital on all fronts. They lower harmful emissions. They improve overall public health. That’s better for our people. It’s better for our planet. This attack on these waivers will put more Californians’ lives at risk, undermine the clean vehicle industry, and stifle innovation and job creation, including in the electric vehicle sector.
We’re talking about life and death here. Despite decades of progress, tens of millions of Californians still breathe some of the worst air in the nation. Our regulations were specifically designed to combat that. It’s no secret that unhealthy levels of toxic air are linked to premature death, respiratory illness, cardiovascular problems, cancer, and other serious health impacts. Striking down these vehicle programs will cost taxpayers an estimated additional $45 billion in healthcare spending, negatively impacting the electric vehicle sector, which has been a growing source of high-paying green jobs and investment. Attacking these waivers will devastate our ability to advance the use of electric vehicles in the state, combat climate change, reduce other harmful pollution, and support a greener economy.
The bottom line is that President lacks the authority to push his anti-California agenda through the Congressional Review Act. We won’t let it happen. Not when we’re facing an air pollution and climate crisis that’s getting worse by the day, one that’s detrimental to the health of our communities.
In California, we’re focused on building out our clean energy infrastructure and providing wide-reaching access to clean energy vehicles throughout the state. We want to make sure our future generations have clean air to breathe and a livable planet.
Meanwhile, the President’s focus on red team versus blue team is threatening Californians’ lives, our economy, and our environment. It’s undoubtedly shortsighted—and it’s also illegal. So, if the Senate continues its pathway that it’s on today and votes to reverse our waivers, make no mistake: I’ll be seeing the Trump administration in court again, for the 23rd time. Thank you.
Gavin Newsom: It was just a number of years ago that we were here announcing a similar lawsuit against the then-Trump administration as it relates to the issue of California's well-established authority under the Clean Air Act to advance the cause of low-carbon green growth. We prevailed in that effort several years ago. We were hopeful that we wouldn't be back. But we weren't naive. Once the administration, Trump 2.0, was sworn in, we anticipated being back here, quite literally back here on this roof, announcing what happens to be the 23rd lawsuit against the Trump administration. We didn't expect the path, however, they would take in this instance.
This notion of a CRA, which, if you're paying attention, then you're confused. No one understands what a CRA is, and that's what this is also all about. There's confusion. It's intended to be confusing. What is a GAO? What is a parliamentarian? What the Senate did is referred to correctly as a ‘nuclear option.’ They decided to change the rules that have been established in the United States Senate, protocols that have been well-established for centuries, in order to attack California and to pollute more. This isn't complicated. This is about pollution.
This is about the act of theft, because pollution's a subsidy. It's an act of theft against our kids and grandkids. It's not complicated. What this act did was allow polluters to pollute and pollute more, impacting all of us. This was also a big day for China–China is celebrating. This was a day that marked a moment of acceleration in their capacity to dominate in the next big global industry.
California was one of the leading players in this space. The world we invented now is competing against us. California established an innovation framework that has allowed us to now have over 60 ZEV manufacturers headquartered in the state of California alone. California created the rules that have now been attacked, which helped create and support the development of an iconic American company by the name of Tesla.
Tesla simply would not have existed as a company had these rules not been applied, and advancing those rules and the regulatory markets that created a level of certainty that created the opportunity to take risks and invest in the development of one of America's most iconic companies. So, this is about our economy. It's about our health. It's about our global competitiveness. It is about Donald Trump, our national security, and continuing to innovate and outpace competition.
Now, the good news is I noted we anticipated this moment, and we are firm and committed in our efforts to continue our leadership in the state of California.
Watch the full press conference, here.
