The U.S. Senate has voted to overturn California’s landmark plan to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035, delivering a major blow to the state’s clean air ambitions and igniting a legal and political firestorm. The 51-44 vote, mostly along party lines, follows a similar move by the House and sends the measure to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it.
This decision would nullify three waivers granted to California by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden administration. These waivers had allowed the state to move ahead with its aggressive zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) rules, including mandates on cars and diesel trucks. Now, California’s decades-long authority to set stricter emissions standards than the federal government is at risk.
What Were California’s 2035 Rules?
California’s plan, announced in 2022 and finalized with EPA waivers in late 2023, aimed to gradually phase out gas-only vehicles. The state mandated that:
- 35% of all new cars sold by 2026 be zero-emission
- 68% by 2030
- 100% by 2035
These regulations also included the Advanced Clean Trucks rule, which required truck manufacturers to hit increasing targets for electric truck sales between 2024 and 2035, and separate rules aimed at drastically cutting nitrogen oxide emissions from trucks and buses.
The rules were adopted by 11 other states and Washington D.C., covering about a third of the U.S. auto market, making the plan one of the most ambitious vehicle electrification efforts in the world.
Supporters Say This Was Key to a Cleaner Future
California officials have vowed to fight back. Governor Gavin Newsom called the Senate vote “an unconstitutional attack” and warned that California would not back down.
“We won’t stand by as Trump Republicans make America smoggy again,” Newsom said at a press conference, pointing to the state’s legal authority under the Clean Air Act of 1967.
Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that the state will sue, arguing that the Congressional Review Act does not apply to EPA waivers, which are not regulations but administrative permissions.
“This federal government overreach is illogical, politically motivated, and comes at the expense of Californian lives,” Bonta said.
Health and environmental advocates also pushed back hard. Will Barrett of the American Lung Association warned that the vote “is a major blow to public health protections delivered under the Clean Air Act.” Dan Becker from the Center for Biological Diversity called it “the first major legislative battle in Trump’s war on the environment.”
Senator Alex Padilla, who grew up in the smog-heavy San Fernando Valley, told colleagues he remembered school closures due to air pollution. “This is personal,” he said.
Representative Adam Schiff accused Senate Republicans of “doing the bidding of the oil industry” after Trump reportedly asked for $1 billion in campaign contributions from oil executives.
Critics Call the Mandates Unrealistic and Costly
Republican senators and some moderate Democrats said the rules were overly ambitious and out of touch with real-world economic and technological limitations.
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming called the EV mandates “fantasy land,” saying, “America can’t meet these impossible standards, not next year, not in 10 years.”
Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia said she supported electric vehicles but not mandates. “Consumers should be able to purchase the vehicle of their choice,” she said. “These mandates replace the will of the people with the will of government.”
John Bozzella, president of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents automakers like GM, Toyota, and Stellantis, argued that California’s mandates were never achievable and would have forced automakers to buy regulatory credits from Tesla. “The concerns were about the mandate — not the technology,” he said.
Some auto manufacturers have struggled to meet EV sales targets. While 23% of new vehicles sold in California this year were zero-emission, that’s slightly down from 25% in 2024, due in part to declining Tesla sales. Many other states are far below those levels.
Can This Actually Stick?
Legally, this move is shaky. Both the Senate Parliamentarian and the Government Accountability Office warned that Congress cannot use the Congressional Review Act to revoke Clean Air Act waivers. The waivers are not classified as regulations and are already in effect.
Despite that, the Senate voted to override this legal interpretation in a procedural vote Wednesday night. “We’re just in completely new territory,” said UCLA law professor Ann Carlson. “Congress seems to be willing to use a statute that doesn’t apply. We’ve never seen this before.”
California is now preparing a legal challenge that could take months or years to resolve. In the meantime, the state may shift toward incentive-based programs, offering rebates to consumers or subsidies to automakers. But California faces a $12 billion budget shortfall, limiting its options.
What’s at Stake?
California leads the U.S. in electric vehicle adoption, and its stricter rules have historically driven innovation across the country. If the state’s authority is permanently stripped, the ripple effect could derail climate and air quality progress nationwide.
The state also faces serious health risks. According to CalMatters, some areas in Los Angeles still have over 100 days of unhealthy air each year, especially in low-income communities. Transportation remains the single largest source of greenhouse gases in California.
The federal Clean Air Act gave California unique authority to lead on pollution control because of its population, geography, and severe air quality issues. Since 1970, the EPA has never revoked a waiver granted to California — until now.
As the legal fight begins, the political divide over clean vehicle policy is only deepening. Trump’s allies are using every tool at their disposal to dismantle the Biden-era climate agenda, while California and its backers are preparing to defend what they see as a cornerstone of public health and environmental leadership.
“This isn’t just about cars,” said Becker of the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s about who decides what kind of future we build — Washington or the people breathing California’s air.”
NP Editor: Elections have consequences. This is a major shift against California’s manipulation of culture and in favor of Trump’s view of the world.
