Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Vice Chair of the Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials Subcommittee Rep. John Joyce (R-PA), along with Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee Ranking Member Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Ranking Member of the Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight Subcommittee Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reject California’s attempt to mandate an all-electric vehicle economy that eliminates purchasing options for Americans and makes the U.S. more reliant on China.

In a bicameral letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan, the four lawmakers warned of the legal and economic consequences of granting a Clean Air Act waiver request from the state of California, which would enable the state to require 35 percent of automobile sales to be zero-emission vehicles in model year 2026, and finally, 100 percent of them by 2035.

“California has not proven any uniquely Californian impacts from greenhouse gas emissions are sufficient to justify that ACC II [the waiver] is necessary to meet ‘compelling and extraordinary conditions.’ Yet, California moves forward with a rule that not only limits purchase options for vehicles, but also costs workers’ jobs in other states that have not adopted the California vehicle standards. Last year, Stellantis put 3,600 workers in Ohio and Michigan on notice that they could lose their jobs if the EPA approves the California waiver request,” the members wrote.

Read the full letter here.