From the Wall Street Journal, exclusive at 9pm EDT, May 17:
Senate to vote as early as next week on measure to revoke the state’s emissions waiver
General Motors went all in on electric cars. Now it is racing to reverse the nation’s most aggressive EV mandate.
“We need your help!” GM said in an email it sent this past week to thousands of its white-collar employees. “Emissions standards that are not aligned with market realities pose a serious threat to our business by undermining consumer choice and vehicle affordability.”
GM, one of the biggest sellers of EVs in the U.S., is encouraging employees to use scripted talking points to lobby senators. The goal is to nullify a 2022 California measure that would ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars and trucks by 2035, a mandate that has since been adopted by 11 other states. The Senate could vote as early as next week to revoke a waiver that allows California to set its own stricter tailpipe-emissions standards.
GM set its own internal goal of ending sales of nearly all gas-only vehicles by 2035 and initially supported the California target, while advocating for a uniform national standard.
But the EV market has taken a turn. Three years ago, U.S. automakers couldn’t keep up with demand; now EV sales are beginning to sputter. Discounts are drying up, car buyers are seeking lower-priced alternatives, and Congress is looking to roll back tax credits that for years have powered electric-vehicle sales.
Even in California, America’s EV market leader, sales are below the state’s own targets. Under the rule, in 2026, sales of zero-emissions vehicles should account for 35% of all vehicle sales. Right now, they account for 20% of the state’s automobile market.
EV sales fell 5% in April while the wider U.S. car market grew by 10%, according to estimates from research firm Motor Intelligence. Currently, EVs make up 7% of the U.S. market.
GM abandoned a self-imposed target to build 400,000 electric vehicles by mid-2024, and last year the company said it would delay plans for a new Buick electric vehicle and push back the opening of an EV truck factory. Ford Motor and other automakers have similarly scaled back plans.
Meanwhile, GM says it continues to invest heavily in EVs and has launched a string of new electric models. A GM spokeswoman said the company has long argued that the U.S. should have a single emissions mandate and that any regulations should factor in market demand.
“GM believes in customer choice, and we continue to focus on offering the best and broadest portfolio of vehicles on the market,” the spokeswoman said....
....MUCH MORE
