Posted on Friday, June 13, 2025
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by Alan Jamison
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49 Comments
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On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed three Congressional Review Act resolutions at the White House, permanently rolling back California’s sweeping electric vehicle mandate. The move nullifies rules that aimed to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035, set zero-emission requirements for heavy-duty trucks, and tighten diesel emissions standards. The president emphasized that the rollbacks safeguard consumer choice, industry competitiveness, and economic freedom.
The Congressional Review Act (CRA), enacted in 1996, gives Congress an expedited pathway to overturn federal agency regulations. Once a federal “rule” is submitted to Congress and published in the Federal Register, lawmakers have a 60 legislative-day window to introduce a joint resolution of disapproval.
The Senate fast-tracks these resolutions—non-debatable motions limited to 10 hours—while both chambers can pass them via simple majority. If the president signs the resolution, the targeted rule is immediately invalidated and blocked from being reissued in a “substantially similar” form without explicit legislative authorization.
Trump and congressional Republicans have now wielded the CRA repeatedly, including this high-profile reversal of California’s EV mandate. That mandate was greenlit by the Biden EPA, which granted California waivers to impose its new restrictions. The CRA resolutions Trump signed overturned the Biden EPA’s waivers.
At the signing, Trump reminded attendees that California’s ability to sharply dictate emissions policy has influenced 11 other states, affecting roughly one-third of the U.S. auto market. He described the mandates as “destructive regulations” that drive up costs, limit consumer freedom, and burden automakers with conflicting state standards. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin reinforced this, highlighting the rollback as part of the “Unleashing American Energy” agenda—bringing relief to automakers, restoration of choice for drivers, and a boost to American jobs.
Conservative groups and auto-industry stakeholders celebrated the move. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, whose membership includes Ford and GM, applauded the relief this brings from “unrealistic” emissions targets. The American Petroleum Institute hailed the development as “car freedom day,” crediting Trump with reversing liberal policies that picked winners and losers in the market.
But the political storm over California’s EV mandate appears to be only just beginning. Governor Gavin Newsom, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and ten other Democrat-led states filed a federal lawsuit within hours of Trump signing the resolutions. They argue that California’s waiver and EV standards were granted under the Clean Air Act—not typical agency rulemaking—placing them outside the CRA’s scope. The suit warns the action jeopardizes air quality, public health gains, and even California’s federal highway funding.
Simultaneously, Republicans in the House are advancing a host of companion proposals similarly aimed at rolling back the Biden administration’s war on gas-powered vehicles: eliminating EV tax credits, levying new fees on EVs, and slashing other environmental rules.
Politically, this episode cements Trump’s reputation as a deregulator keen on challenging state-level green agendas. It places the legal battle at the center of the federal-state dynamic, with the courts—potentially the Supreme Court—poised to make landmark decisions on CRA limits and clean-air authority.
For conservatives, the CRA-based reversal is a win for deregulation, free markets, and federalism. Even amid looming litigation and environmentalist backlash, Trump’s action effectively targets one of America’s most aggressive climate policies and shifts the balance toward economic freedom—and a redefined federal role in environmental mandates.
Alan Jamison is the pen name of a political writer with extensive experience writing for several notable politicians and news outlets.
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