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On Monday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued the EPA over changes to California\u2019s emissions waivers.<\/p>\n
JOS\u00c9 LUIS VILLEGAS<\/p>\n
jvillegas@sacbee.com<\/p>\n
Attorney General Rob Bonta sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Monday after the regulator signaled efforts to further dismantle California\u2019s emission policies.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s round two for the federal agency, which mounted a campaign against similar emissions policies early last year. That attempt successfully nullified a rule that would have required all vehicles sold in California to be zero-emission by 2035. Afterward, Bonta sued President Donald Trump and the EPA in a case that is still being litigated.<\/p>\n
On June 12, the EPA announced it would give Congress the power to review other California emissions policies, a move that will likely result in their revocation. The specific programs targeted by the EPA regulate emissions from vehicles, lawn and garden equipment, and generators.<\/p>\n
Bonta, alongside a multi-state coalition of attorneys general, filed another lawsuit against the agency in response.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese latest illegal actions would mean more pollution, poorer air quality, more market uncertainty and greater health risks for communities already overburdened by emissions,\u201d said Bonta in a statement Monday.<\/p>\n
California has long held special authority under the federal Clean Air Act<\/a> to set stricter emissions standards than the federal government because of the state\u2019s historic smog problems. Other states don\u2019t have the same authority, but many can \u2014 and do \u2014 choose to adhere to California\u2019s rules over the national standard.<\/p>\n Trump has framed California\u2019s regulations as a burden for automakers and an attack on the oil and gas industry. He has sought to block the state\u2019s laws using federal agencies and a unified Congress.<\/p>\n \u201cWe officially rescue the U.S. auto industry from destruction by terminating the California electric vehicle mandate once and for all,\u201d Trump said at a June 2025 press conference<\/a> announcing the resolution that blocked the state\u2019s zero-emission vehicle mandate.<\/p>\n \u201cThe automakers didn\u2019t know what to do … when you have 17 states, you\u2019re building cars for two countries,\u201d Trump said, referring to the states that have decided to follow California\u2019s standards.<\/p>\n The EPA used a novel administrative maneuver to redefine the Clean Air Act carve-out that allows California to create tighter standards. Under the law, California is able to set these stricter standards through a waiver from the EPA.<\/p>\n Before the second Trump administration, those waivers had never required congressional approval. But the EPA announced a new interpretation of regulatory procedures that allows the agency to send the waivers to Congress.<\/p>\n The EPA said the regulations \u201cleave small businesses, landscapers and homeowners forced to use expensive and impractical electric tools.\u201d<\/p>\n Bonta called the second round in the EPA\u2019s regulatory battle with California\u2019s emissions policy \u201can unlawful attack.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor 50 years, both Democratic and Republican administrations have agreed that EPA Clean Air Act waivers are not rules, and EPA\u2019s unlawful attempt to reclassify them \u2014 years after the fact \u2014 is an illegal attempt to take down these important tools,\u201d Bonta said.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n
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