If you’ve got the urge to stockpile thousands of ICE vehicles before they all disappear like some kind of automotive survivalist, but haven’t got the funds or space to do it, here’s some good news. The U.S. government is preparing to delay plans to introduce hardcore emissions legislation that would have fast-tracked the auto industry’s shift to EVs, according to news reports.
Increasing the uptake of electric cars is one of the Biden administration’s goals as it attempts to tackle climate change. The introduction of stringent tailpipe pollutant rules was one of the president’s strategies to get people to ditch their combustion vehicles.
The new EPA regs were due to come into force with the introduction of 2027 model-year cars to ensure two-thirds of all new light vehicles sold by the year 2032 produced no emissions. In practical terms that would mean they’re EVs. However, the growth in demand for electric cars has slowed recently and is far short of earlier predictions. EVs accounted for only 7 percent of sales last year, and dealers have implored Joe Biden to ease back on the electric car push, telling him customers don’t want them and unused examples are piling up on lots.
Related: EPA Sends Latest Emissions Cuts Proposal To White House
Biden and his team, according to a report in the New York Times, have been listening. The NYT says the administration is expected to announce changes to emissions legislation this spring that would relax the tailpipe targets automakers need to hit. Under the revised rules, carmakers would be able to get away with making fewer EVs as a percentage of their overall output by 2030 than originally proposed.
That news will please automakers, dealers, and members of the United Auto Workers union, who only recently endorsed Biden’s reelection campaign after previously haranguing the president for trying to force through a switch to EVs too quickly, The Hill reports. In December, House Republicans approved a bill to block the Biden administration’s proposed emissions regs, accusing the government of denying car buyers the right to choose what fuel worked best for them, and potentially handing jobs and money to China’s auto industry.