President Donald Trump has launched a sweeping reset of the federal fuel standards that were tightened under President Joe Biden. The White House says the move will protect gas-powered vehicles from what Trump calls the climate agenda of the Democratic Party, and will save American families a total of $109 Billion. Trump argues that the old rules were designed to make traditional cars unaffordable, forcing drivers into electric vehicles whether they wanted them or not.
The Executive Order That Resets the Fuel Standards
Trump’s new executive order dismantles the Biden-era Corporate Average Fuel Economy rules. These rules increased required fuel efficiency by eight percent in 2024 and 2025, then ten percent in 2026, pushing the industry toward a target of about fifty miles per gallon by 2031. According to Trump, the regulations were so strict that they could not be met using gasoline engines, and they were meant to make electric vehicles the only option.
The Trump administration says the new rules will require vehicles to reach about thirty four miles per gallon by 2031. This is a major shift away from the earlier path and is intended to reflect the limits of current technology instead of what Trump calls political goals. Under the order, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will revise the standards so that automakers can meet them without abandoning gas engines.
Trump also highlighted his earlier actions against California’s fuel and electric vehicle mandates. In June, he signed measures that revoked California’s authority to force eighty percent of cars sold in the state to be electric by 2035. Those measures also eliminated the Biden-era EPA waivers that had approved California’s plan to phase out gasoline-only cars. Trump said these steps were essential to protecting the national market from a single state’s attempt to control vehicle standards across the country.
Another major change came from Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which he signed in July. It removed all civil penalties for violating fuel economy standards. Under Biden, those penalties could reach significant amounts and would have placed heavy financial pressure on manufacturers if they failed to meet the climate-driven targets.
Why Trump Says the Reset Was Necessary
During the announcement, Trump said the old rules were damaging the entire industry and were never realistic to begin with. He said, “We are officially terminating Joe Biden’s ridiculously burdensome, horrible actually, CAFE standards that imposed expensive restrictions.” Trump said automakers around the world were unable to meet the requirements and that the rules drove car prices sharply higher.
He also criticized the electric vehicle mandate, saying that Biden’s policies were written to eliminate the gasoline car entirely. Trump said, “The greatest scam in American history, the Green New Scam. And it is a quest to end the gasoline-powered car.” He stressed that Americans should choose what they want to drive, adding, “People want the gasoline car. They want everything. They want electric. They want lots of alternatives. But they do want the gasoline car.”
The White House echoed these concerns, saying Biden’s rules would have raised the average price of a new vehicle by nearly one thousand dollars. They also warned that the previous standards were so strict that they would have limited affordable options for middle-class families.
Trump said the rules under Biden had already driven car prices up more than twenty five percent, and he noted that in one model year alone, prices rose by eighteen percent. The administration argues that without this reset, those trends would continue as automakers struggled to meet the aggressive climate requirements.
Supporters Say the Reset Brings Back Common Sense
Auto industry leaders strongly praised Trump’s decision. Ford CEO Jim Farley said, “As America’s largest auto producer, we appreciate President Trump’s leadership in aligning fuel economy standards with market realities.” He added that the move would allow the industry to cut emissions while still offering “choice and affordability” to customers. Farley called the reset “a win for customers and common sense.”
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa echoed that message. He said the company looks forward to policies that support customer freedom and affordability, stating that Stellantis appreciates efforts to align CAFE standards with “real world market conditions” and that the company wants to “offer our customers the freedom to choose the vehicles they want at prices they can afford.”
General Motors also supported the reset. The company said it backs the goal of a single national standard that allows for customer choice and provides long-term stability to the auto industry. GM emphasized its commitment to offering a mix of both electric and gas-powered vehicles.
Industry groups have been pushing for similar changes. The American Petroleum Institute argued that the Biden fuel standards aimed to phase out liquid fuel vehicles entirely. Trump’s reset delivers the reversal they sought.
Opponents of the new policy say the rollback will slow progress on emissions reduction and weaken long-term environmental goals. Some analysts note that vehicle prices may not fall immediately because automakers plan their model designs years in advance and have already spent large sums preparing to comply with the older rules.
Democrats also criticize the change, arguing that it undermines efforts to expand clean transportation and weakens steps taken to fight climate change.
Trump Says He Has Stopped an Unattainable Climate Agenda
Trump framed his reset as a defense of American consumers against what he calls the Democrats’ overly aggressive climate agenda. He said the Biden standards were written in a way that made gas cars unsustainable and would have forced families into expensive electric vehicles. He said his order restores freedom of choice and ends an attempt to remove gas-powered cars from the road entirely.
Trump emphasized that he supports electric vehicles but not mandates. He said Americans should buy whatever fits their lives and budgets instead of being steered into one option through federal pressure. His reset marks one of the largest policy reversals of the Biden fuel strategy and signals his intention to protect gas-powered vehicles for decades to come.
