The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to block California’s landmark plan to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035, a measure that has been adopted by 11 other states representing a third of the U.S. auto market. The vote sends the measure to President Donald Trump to repeal a waiver granted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under former President Joe Biden in December, allowing California to mandate at least 80% electric vehicles by 2035.
The decision is seen as a win for General Motors, Toyota, and other automakers that heavily lobbied against the rules. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, representing GM, Toyota, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Stellantis, and others, praised the vote. “The fact is these EV sales mandates were never achievable,” said the group’s CEO, John Bozzella. “In reality, meeting the mandates would require diverting finite capital from the EV transition to purchase compliance credits from Tesla.”
This move is part of a series of actions taking aim at electric vehicles. A bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday would end a $7,500 tax credit for new electric vehicles, impose a new $250 annual fee on EVs for road repair costs, and repeal vehicle emissions rules designed to encourage automakers to build more EVs. If upheld by the courts, the rule will make it easier for automakers to delay or cancel some EV production.
California’s rules require 35% of light-duty vehicles in the 2026 model year to be zero-emission models. Automakers argue that meeting this target is impossible given current EV sales, which are 10% or lower in some states adopting the rules.
