WASHINGTON, D.C. Four Republican congressmen are trying to stop the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from issuing Clean Air Act waivers for states seeking to ban or otherwise limit the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles while the EPA doubles down with a plan to set new tailpipe emissions limits and require as many as 67 percent of all new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2032 to be all electric.
Backed by the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, the Panhandle Producers & Royalty Owners Association and the Texas Oil & Gas Association, the Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Republican Congressmen Bob Latta of Ohio, John Joyce of Pennsylvania, Gus Bilirakis of Florida and Jay Obernolte of California.
“Every American should be able to choose the type of car or truck they want to drive,” said AFPM President-CEO Chet Thompson, who primarily represents the petroleum refining industry. “Restricting consumer choice by eliminating competition and banning entire vehicle power trains is the wrong path to achieving cleaner transportation or supporting U.S. energy security. In fact, it could undercut both.
“Liquid fuels are an irreplaceable part of meeting future energy demand and they will play an important role in reducing the carbon intensity of transportation,” Thompson said, adding that California would probably be the first state to ban the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles.
“AFPM appreciates the leadership of Reps. Latta, Joyce, Bilirakis and Obernolte in introducing legislation that would prohibit California from dictating to families all across the country the types of cars they must purchase and drive.”
PPROA President Judy Stark said from Amarillo that the costs of consumers being forced to purchase EVs “will far outweigh the damage done to the economy and more importantly to the consumers.
“The push in this direction will minimally affect air quality compared to the environmental damage done by mining minerals, the inability to recycle EV batteries and the cost to replace an EV battery when it goes out,” Stark said.
Referring to the current necessity of buying most of the lithium that’s needed to manufacture EV batteries from China, Stark said, “It will also endanger national security to put more product in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.
“The U.S. needs common sense legislators who represent the interests of the nation and its people.”
TXOGA President Todd Staples said from Austin that the EPA’s plan to mandate tailpipe emissions standards “will only serve to hurt consumer choice, saddle Americans with higher costs and increase our nation’s reliance on unstable foreign supply chains.
“We are encouraged to hear that Congress is considering legislation that would address the key areas of concern caused by this proposal,” Staples said.
