GOP bill blocks EPA tailpipe pollution rule

WASHINGTON — House Republicans approved a bill Wednesday to block strict new tailpipe pollution limits proposed by the Biden administration, calling the plan a back-door mandate for electric vehicles.

A rule proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency would require that up to two-thirds of new vehicles sold in the U.S. are electric by 2032, a nearly tenfold increase over current EV sales. The proposed regulation, announced in April, would set tailpipe emissions limits for the 2027 through 2032 model years that are the strictest ever imposed — and call for far more new EV sales than the auto industry agreed to less than two years ago.

The EPA says it is not imposing an EV mandate, but Republicans say the plan favors EVs and punishes gas engines, forcing Americans into cars and trucks they can’t afford.

“Americans should have the right to decide what products and appliances work best for their family, not the federal government,’’ said Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., the bill’s chief sponsor.

The proposed EPA regulation would drive up costs for motorists “and hand the keys of America’s auto industry to China,” Walberg said, referring to that country’s dominance over the EV battery supply chain.

The measure was approved 221-197 and now goes to the Senate, where it is unlikely to advance. Five Democrats — Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez of Texas; Don Davis of North Carolina; Jared Golden of Maine; and Mary Peltola of Alaska — voted with Republicans to block the EPA rule.

New EVs typically cost more than gas-powered cars, although prices have declined in recent months as supplies have increased and tax credits for EV purchases approved in the 2022 climate law have taken effect. EVs also have lower operating costs because they don’t require gasoline.

The average transaction price for EVs was $53,469 in July, compared with $48,334 for gas-powered cars, according to Kelley Blue Book, an automotive research company.