Feenstra

On Wednesday, Dec. 18, President Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) delivered yet another blow to the American auto industry and affordability for our families. The EPA announced that it granted California permission to phase out the sale of gas-powered cars in the state. In doing so, the EPA put radical Green New Deal policy agenda items over the economic interests of American consumers.

The permissions from the EPA come in the form of two waivers. The first waiver allows the state of California to mandate that 35% of new sales of cars and pickup trucks be zero-emission vehicles by 2026. This is mandated to reach 90% in 2027. The second waiver builds on those mandates and aims to make all new car sales in the state zero-emission within the decade. Radicals in California are being empowered by the Biden administration.

Not only are these mandates a disaster for our auto industry, but they are also horrible for the average American family and worker. In 2023, the average household income in the United States was about $80,000 per year. Compare this to the average cost of a new electric car at $56,000. The EV price tag is nearly $10,000 higher than the average gas-powered car. Brand-new car purchases are already declining due to high interest rates and a middle class that is feeling the pinch under President Biden’s failed economic policies. We should not actively make cars and trucks increasingly affordable to advance a political agenda.

In July, Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID) and I led over 150 colleagues in a letter to the EPA urging the Biden administration to overturn its mandates to rapidly make more cars, trucks, tractors, buses, and semis fully electric. This mandate would have put undue pressure on our families, farmers, small businesses, and manufacturers–pressure that would also be felt in the wallets of all Americans through higher grocery and utility bills, and everyday goods that our families rely on.

We live in a free market. If electric trucks and cars become cheaper, more accessible, and more efficient than gas counterparts, the free market will make the choice. This case of government overreach from unelected bureaucrats represents how the Biden administration has operated for the last four years.

It is important to consider liquid-fuel alternatives to EVs. The 4th District of Iowa is the number one producer of ethanol and biofuels in the nation. Biofuels– like E-15 — burn cleaner than standard gas and can be used in nearly 97% of vehicles on the road that are newer than 2001. Year-round access to sustainable biofuels would not only improve energy costs for families nationwide, but it would also offer more agricultural opportunities to Iowa’s farmers and producers. It’s a win for all sides–cheaper energy and drivers not being forced to buy vehicles they cannot afford.

On my 36 County Tour, I have seen firsthand how our fields hold unlimited potential to lower prices at the pump, boost American energy independence, and support our agricultural communities. President Biden’s radical EPA — and a misguided California — are not following American, free-market principles. In Congress, I will always fight for a sound energy policy that puts our citizens, and our nation, first.

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Randy Feenstra, a Republican from Hull, represents Iowa’s Fourth District in the U.S. House.