Trump administration rolls back Biden-era fuel economy standards

Regulators estimate the new rules will result in an average of 34.9 miles per gallon by model year 2031, down from an earlier projection of 50.4 mpg. US transportation secretary Sean Duffy said president Donald Trump's administration had ended the 'illegal mandate' that forced automakers to produce more expensive electric vehicles. (EPA Images pic)WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's administration on Monday finalised its rollback of US fuel economy standards that were meant to spur the transition towards electric vehicles (EV) and reduce planet-warming emissions from transport, the country's biggest source of greenhouse gases.The new standards require a fleet average fuel economy of 34.9 miles per gallon (6.74 liters per 100km) by model year 2031 - a figure that the rule's own data shows was already achieved two years ago."Thanks to president Trump's leadership, we have finally ended the illegal mandate that forced automakers to produce more expensive electric vehicles that American families didn't want," transportation secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement.The statement said the rule change would reduce the average cost of new vehicles by US$1,300, save US$138 billion over the next five years, and "prevent more than 300,000 serious injuries and save 1,900 lives by encouraging new car sales".The change was hailed by Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a lobby group that includes Detroit and international carmakers."The standards finalised under the previous administration effectively required a switchover to electric vehicles that was out of step with market realities and customer demand.Today's final rule is an appropriate course correction," said John Bozzella, the group's president and CEO.EV incentive rollbackIt is the latest step under Trump and his Republican allies to undo incentives for automakers to produce electric cars, at a time when China is dominating the global market.Earlier this year, the administration ended federal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from cars, while Congress last year repealed EV tax credits, and blocked California from banning the sale of new gasoline cars from 2035.The rule revises the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, created in 1975 in response to the Arab oil embargo, which require vehicles to achieve the "maximum feasible" mileage per gallon.The rule change was partly symbolic: Biden-era updates to CAFE had been rendered toothless after the Republicans' "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" of 2025 zeroed out the penalties for automakers failing to meet…