EPA Reconsiders Previous Administration’s Withdrawal Of California’s Waiver To Enforce Greenhouse Gas Standards

As directed in President Biden’s Executive Order 13990 on “Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis,” and in response to requests by states and other stakeholders, today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public input on its reconsideration of the Agency’s 2019 action titled The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient Vehicles Rule Part One: One National Program Rule (SAFE-1) for the purposes of rescinding the action taken by the prior administration.

“I am a firm believer in California’s long-standing statutory authority to lead. The 2019 decision to revoke the state’s waiver to enforce its greenhouse gas pollution standards for cars and trucks was legally dubious and an attack on the public’s health and wellbeing,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Today, we are delivering on President Biden’s clear direction to tackle the climate crisis by taking a major step forward to restore state leadership and advance EPA’s greenhouse gas pollution reduction goals.”

EPA is reconsidering actions taken by the previous administration in SAFE-1. The purpose of this Notice of Reconsideration is to seek comment on a number of issues in the 2019 SAFE-1 action including:

• Whether it was proper for EPA to reconsider a previously issued CAA waiver.
• Whether EPA’s action to withdraw California’s waiver in consideration of EPCA preemption was appropriate.
• Whether the SAFE-1 interpretation of the CAA that enabled EPA to withdraw California’s waiver was appropriate.
• Whether the SAFE-1 interpretation of CAA section 177 that could disallow other states’ ability to adopt California GHG emission standards was appropriate.

The agency will hold a virtual public hearing on June 2, and the public comment period on the Notice of Reconsideration will be open until July 6.

EPA will be taking a separate action to reconsider the previous administration’s final rule titled The Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Final Rule for Model Years 2021-2026 (SAFE-2). EPA plans to propose this rule in July 2021.