Attorney General Bird Leads Coalition to End California’s Illegal Electric Car and Truck Mandate

DES MOINES— Today, Attorney General Brenna Bird led a coalition of 26 states in support of ending California’s illegal war on gas-powered cars and trucks. The States’ brief with the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals explains the authority of Congress and President Trump to revoke waivers granted to California by the Biden Administration’s EPA. Those waivers allow California’s radical net-zero emissions standards to dictate to all Americans what kind of vehicles they are allowed to buy and to regulate trucking out of existence.   

The radical green agenda of leftists like California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Biden Administration has hiked prices for businesses and consumers across the country. Costs for electric trucks already start around $100,000 and can reach the high six figures. Only eight other states have adopted California’s truck ban, so the special California carve-out lets one radical state overrule car and truck purchases in more than 80% of States.  

California’s truck ban will not just increase costs. It will devastate the demand for liquid fuels, such as biodiesel, cutting trucking jobs across the nation. Iowa’s trucking industry currently provides almost 100,000 jobs—almost one in thirteen jobs in the state. 

“Congress and President Trump have spoken: California has no legal power to force us to buy an electric vehicle,” said Attorney General Bird. “People should have a choice in the kind of vehicle they drive, whether gas, hybrid, or electric powered. America would grind to a halt without truckers who deliver our food, clothes, and other necessities. Iowa isn’t going to take a backseat as California tries to run truckers off the road.”  

Iowa led the brief and was joined by 25 other states, including Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. 

Read the full briefs here and here.  

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For More Information:

Jen Green 

jen.green@ag.iowa.gov