California regulators are expected to finalize regulations phasing out the sale of new light-duty petroleum-fueled vehicles over the next decade in a Thursday vote.
The state would require zero-emissions vehicles (ZEV) to make up all new light duty vehicle sales by 2035, and establish tougher tailpipe emissions standards for the remaining internal combustion engines in California beyond that date.
The standards mark the most aggressive US mandates yet to transition away from gasoline-and diesel-powered vehicles in what was once the largest state market for the fuels. State goals have prompted warnings on the feasibility for charging infrastructure, vehicle manufacturers and consumer preferences to meet this key component of California's carbon neutrality ambitions.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) will hold a second public hearing and vote tomorrow on the Advanced Clean Cars II regulation. If adopted, the agency would need to respond to public comments, file the plan with state administrative offices and submit the program to the US Environmental Protection Agency as a revision to the state's Clean Air Act implementation plan. President Joe Biden has made electric vehicle adoption an administrative priority.
The regulations require manufacturers to offer rising percentages of ZEVs in their fleets between 2026 and 2035. Such vehicles must make up 35pc of those offered in the 2026 model year, 68pc of vehicles offered in 2030 and 100pc of new vehicles for the 2035 model year.
More than 2mn light duty vehicles were sold in California in 2021, with battery-powered, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell vehicles making up 12.4pc of those sales, according to the state. That continued to climb in the first half of 2022, with ZEVs accounting for 16.5pc of the roughly 974,000 light-duty vehicles sold.
Rising ZEV use has contributed to a growing imbalance of credits in California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), as vehicle charging both generates credits and reduces deficit-generating CARBOB consumption. LCFS credits from electric generation made up 23pc of all new credits in the first quarter of 2022, the most recent period available.
CARB will begin its hearing at 12pm ET.
