Virginia Dems Force State to Adopt California’s Crackdown on Gas Cars

Multiple Republican attempts to repeal a 2021 law were rejected Tuesday by the Virginia Senate Democrats. aimed at curbing carbon emissions By tethering state regulations with those in California.

Multiple GOP-introduced measures were ultimately defeated by senators on the Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee. They had been combined into one measure in a party-line vote 8-7. Virginia Republicans including Gov. Glenn Youngkin and other Virginia Republicans have vocally opposed the 2021 legislation. arguing it threatens grid reliability Moreover, it forces the state to take unrealistic measures.

“As the governor stated, Democrats in Virginia outsourced the decision-making on energy policy to unelected bureaucrats in California,” Macaulay Porter was a Youngkin spokesperson and made this statement.

Former Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam signed the legislation in March 2021. Ralph Northam signed the legislation — the so-called Clean Cars bill — in an effort to bolster Virginia’s clean energy transition and boost the number of electric vehicles sold throughout the state. Environmental groups were pleased with the bill. Virginia must also adopt California’s tailpipe emission standards.

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Republican Governor. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican Governor of Virginia, pledged to repeal a state law that required emissions standards to be similar to those in California.
(Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

Republicans opposed Clean Cars legislation as it was being signed into law by Northam. They reacted in anger when an environmental agency from California took up the cause. moved forward with a rule requiring all new vehicle sales to be electric — and banning new gas-powered car sales — beginning in 2035. Virginia is required by its 2021 law to adopt the same rules.

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Youngkin made it clear in his 2022 Energy Plan, which was released in October. “repeal the legislative mandate tying Virginia to California’s electric vehicle mandate to protect grid reliability.” He also stated that he would. “prevent this ridiculous edict from being forced on Virginians.”

Republicans also introduced the measures Democrats defeated on Tuesday.

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“The vote today shows that Youngkin-led attacks on Virginia’s bedrock climate laws are a dead end and that he should get on the side of making pollution progress and not stand against it,” Walton Shepherd is the Virginia policy director of the Natural Resources Defense Council. This environmental group opposes fossil fuels.

This report was contributed by The Associated Press.