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Last month, the top law officers in 17 states \u2014 led by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost \u2014 filed suit attempting to block the use of the waiver, claiming it violates the U.S. Constitution\u2019s equal sovereignty doctrine. Yost was joined in the suit by Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Five automakers banded together to file a motion to intervene, saying it supports the state\u2019s efforts to \u201cprotect public health\u201d and fight climate changed. The five companies are Ford, BMW Group, Honda, Volkswagen and Volvo Cars, according to an Automotive News report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFord is combatting climate change. We support the EPA\u2019s recent Waiver Decision to allow California and other states to protect people\u2019s health and combat climate change by establishing and enforcing air pollution standards and zero emission vehicle requirements,\u201d said Steven Croley, chief policy officer and general counsel, in a statement<\/a><\/u><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is the right thing to do for people and the planet \u2014 but it also is critical to the automotive industry\u2019s future success. It moves us closer to a zero-emissions transportation future, and it creates regulatory stability and a level regulatory playing field for the entire industry.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n The suit was filed May 12<\/a><\/u><\/strong> in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. It came after the EPA announced March 9 it would reinstate California\u2019s waiver that was previously revoked by the Trump administration in 2019<\/a><\/u><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump claimed the pulling California\u2019s waiver allowed for a uniform national standard, which would make it easier for automakers to produce vehicles that are less expensive and safer at the same time \u2014 a notion disputed by a variety of environmental and safety advocates as well as some automakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The attorneys general claim giving California the right to set different standards than the rest of the country is unfair to those states. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in March that other states could opt to use the California standard instead of the less stringent federal mark. Regan nor the EPA have commented on the new lawsuit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Act simply leaves California with a slice of its sovereign authority that Congress withdraws from every other state,\u201d Patrick Morrisey, the attorney general of West Virginia, said in a statement, according to The Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe EPA cannot selectively waive the Act\u2019s preemption for California alone because that favoritism violates the states\u2019 equal sovereignty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n President Joe Biden made it one of is first acts as president in January 2021, via executive order, to direct the EPA to examine the possibility of reinstating the waiver, which was critical to the state being able to clean up its air pollution in the late 20th<\/sup> century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, before that happened, the state of California filed suit with the support of the five automakers intervening now, for the ability to set the higher, more rigid standard. In some cases, the companies were already working toward loftier targets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re not changing our strategy,\u201d Art St. Cyr, the head of automotive operations for American Honda, told TheDetroitBureau.com in 2019, following the debut of the automaker\u2019s first gas-electric SUV, the 2020 CR-V Hybrid. St. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyr disputed the question of whether the push to electric vehicles would cost jobs, noting Honda invested $4.2 million to add production of the hybrid model at its Indiana plant, adding 34 jobs in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFiling suit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Biden made the change<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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