Carmaker lobbying group pushes back on EPA pollution curb plan

The Biden administration’s proposal to crack down on vehicle pollution with strict new tailpipe emission limits isn’t reasonable or achievable by a 2032 deadline, according to the biggest auto industry trade group in the US.  

The Washington-based Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents automakers that manufacture almost all new cars and trucks sold in the country, plans to submit comments to the US Environmental Protection Agency which criticize proposed caps on carbon dioxide emissions at 82 grams per mile in model year 2032.

Those limits “are neither reasonable nor achievable in the timeframe covered,” the lobbying group wrote in an executive summary of comments shared Wednesday by a spokesperson ahead of its submission to the EPA. 

Environmentalists have hailed the EPA’s proposal, saying the new rules are designed to effectively ensure that two out of every three cars and light trucks sold in 2032 are electric models. But automakers warn that will result in higher sticker prices and fewer choices for carbuyers. 

The Auto Alliance cited new rules imposed by President Joe Biden’s signature 2022 Inflation Reduction Act as a hurdle to EV adoption — and for meeting the tougher emissions mandates. For example, the trade group comments fault the EPA proposal for relying on questionable assumptions about the availability and processing of critical minerals used in electric car batteries. The IRA requires batteries with minerals sourced in the US or from countries with which it has a free trade agreement in order for EVs to qualify for a full consumer tax credit.