Revised Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards

EPA is proposing to revise the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for light-duty vehicles.

The American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to revise the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for light-duty vehicles for 2023 and later model years to make the standards more stringent.

On 20 January 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 13990 “Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science To Tackle the Climate Crisis” asking EPA to consider whether to propose suspending, revising, or rescinding the standards previously revised under the “The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule for Model Years 2021-2026 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks,” promulgated in April 2020.

The SAFE rule significantly weakened the standards established in 2012, which in part set GHG standards for model years 2021-25. EPA stated that in light of the significant contribution of light-duty vehicles to transportation sector GHG emissions, standards more stringent than those relaxed in the SAFE rule are appropriate under the Clean Air Act.

Therefore, EPA proposed to revise the GHG standards to be more stringent than the SAFE rule standards in each model year from 2023 through 2026.  In addition, EPA also proposed some technical amendments to clarify and streamline our regulations.

To get the full text of the revised GHG emission standard, please do not hesitate to contact the EFS Product Compliance and Automotive Regulatory Team.