California Gov. Gavin Newsom announces an executive order requiring all new passenger vehicles sold in the state to be zero-emission by 2035 on Sept. 23, 2020 in Sacramento. Photo credit: The Office of California Governor Gavin Newsom (Available for media use)
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— More than 80 environmental and justice organizations delivered a letter to California Gov. Gavin Newsom today urging him to strengthen the state’s clean car regulations. The letter comes ahead of Newsom’s State of the State address Tuesday, in which he’s expected to outline his top priorities.
Historically California has been the nationwide leader on setting strong emissions standards, but the state is at risk of losing this mantle. Under the current draft of California’s clean cars rule, the state aims to reach 61% electric vehicle sales by 2030 — only a modest improvement over the Biden administration’s goal of making 50% of new vehicle sales electric by 2030.
The letter calls on the governor to direct the California Air Resources Board, or CARB, to set a much tougher target to curb emissions in California and ensure an equitable transition to electric vehicles. CARB will finalize the regulation later this year.
“Aggressive and equity-focused policies that decarbonize the transportation sector are key to achieving our climate justice goals in California,” said Bahram Fazeli, director of research and policy at Communities for a Better Environment. “In this regulation, the Newsom administration and CARB have an opportunity to promote more equitable outcomes, exercise leadership on the world stage, and create good jobs while meaningfully contributing to the vision of lifting communities out the cycle of pollution and poverty. We urge them to deliver on this.”
See the full Center for Biological Diversity’s press release featuring CBE here.