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<\/p>\nRegulators with the California Energy Commission on Monday unanimously approved new rules that will restrict what tires you can buy <\/a>when it’s time to replace them on your car.<\/p>\n KCRA 3, as the only journalists in the hearing room, first reported the groundbreaking, and polarizing, decision to make California the first state in the nation to require replacement tires with certain efficiency standards. The issue became national news with our coverage being highlighted during California GOP candidate Steve Hilton’s discussion with podcaster Joe Rogan<\/a>. <\/p>\n Here\u2019s what to know about the new rules and what proponents and opponents are saying about their impact. <\/p>\n What was approved? <\/p>\n A two-phased approach aimed at phasing out the sale of certain energy efficiency standards, based on rolling resistance. <\/p>\n Rolling resistance means how much energy a tire uses as it rolls down the road. Lower resistance means a vehicle uses less gas or electricity. <\/p>\n New cars come with generally efficient tires, but consumers typically replace those with higher rolling resistance tires. <\/p>\n That resistance gap is what regulators are trying to narrow. <\/p>\n The first phase of standards begins in 2029. The second begins in 2033. <\/p>\n Two phases for the rubber to meet the road: Phase 1 would allow the sale of tires with a maximum rolling resistance level of 9.1 newtons per kilonewton (N\/kN).Phase 2 would lower the standard to 7.2 (N\/kN). <\/p>\n The commission came up with the standards after testing 537 types of tires.<\/p>\n There are some exclusions to the new rules, according to the CEC:<\/p>\n Competition tires designed for motorsportsWinter-type snow tiresAll-season winter performance tiresUsed and retreaded tiresDeep tread tiresTires designed for ATVs and other off-road vehiclesLarge off-road tires for use up to 99 mphMotorcycle tiresTemporary-use spare tiresSmall tires with \u226413-inch nominal rim diameterLimited production tires (<15,000 per year)Tires sold for use on an emergency vehicleHigh load index tires (122 or greater)Tires not capable of sustaining speeds over 50 mphSpace saver tiresHow many drivers will this impact? <\/p>\n Anyone who plans to buy tires for a passenger car or light-duty truck is impacted by the new rule. <\/p>\n This would no longer allow the sale of 70% of tires that are currently sold in California by 2033. <\/p>\n The state argues that manufacturers have seven years to adjust the design of tires that don\u2019t meet the standard, and that some manufacturers are already making more energy efficient tires and other countries have set efficiency standards. <\/p>\n What benefits does the state promise? <\/p>\n The state says it will achieve twin goals of saving consumers nearly $1 billion per year in gas and electricity costs, while also improving air quality. <\/p>\n The CEC estimates that CO2 emissions would be reduced by 2 million metric tons per year, the equivalent of taking 400,000 gas cars off the road. <\/p>\n The CEC and the industry don\u2019t agree on how much consumers would save.<\/p>\n The CEC says that consumers will pay slightly more on tires but more than make that up on savings at the fuel pump. It estimates a $6 per set of tires ($1.50 per tire) added cost for phase one but an overall savings of $79 within four months. By 2033, it estimates added costs of $26 per tire set ($6.50 per tire) but $153 net savings. <\/p>\n Goodyear is the largest tire manufacturer in the United States. Bret Gladfelty, on behalf of Goodyear, told the commission that costs for the new tires could actually end up costing several hundred dollars.<\/p>\n KCRA 3 spoke to the owner of a tire shop in Sacramento<\/a> who said most of their budget-friendly tires would be wiped out and expected added costs of $10 to $20 per tire.<\/p>\n Why is the commission setting rules on tire efficiency? <\/p>\n State lawmakers approved a law in 2003, AB 844, that directed the energy commission to explore rules around tire efficiency. It’s not clear why the rule sat dormant for years. <\/p>\n The chairman of the commission said before the vote that he had no idea about the legislation until Commissioner Nancy Skinner brought it up. Skinner has said had she been on the commission sooner it may have been implemented sooner. <\/p>\n Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Skinner to the commission after she termed out of the State Senate in 2025. <\/p>\n What are the industry’s concerns?<\/p>\n Gov. Gavin Newsom said he backed the new rules<\/a> and claimed that the “vast majority” of tire makers supported this. <\/p>\n It\u2019s not that clear-cut, since they continue to raise serious concerns. <\/p>\n While many tire makers said they support the overall goals of the effort, the manufacturers have raised concerns about affordability, enforcement and have warned that without proper safeguards, foreign companies could undercut the program. <\/p>\n \u201cUSTMA has engaged with California at every stage of this 23-year process to help the state develop a tire regulation that enhances safety, performance, and consumer value,\u201d the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association said in a statement. \u201cSignificant concerns remain, including replacement tire compatibility and consistent enforcement that protects consumers and supports fair competition. We urge the Commission to resolve these concerns before implementation.\u201d<\/p>\n Tracey Norberg with USTMA said during public comment<\/a> that the regulation was not \u201cready for primetime.\u201d <\/p>\n Gladfelty with Goodyear said during public comment that the regulation would \u201churt consumers, drive up costs and simply flood the state with used tires.\u201d<\/p>\n Bridgestone and Michelin North America representatives indicated support for the rules but also called for consistent enforcement to prove compliance. Michelin is based in France. Bridgestone is based in Japan. <\/p>\n Dunlop urged policymakers to \u201ccarefully assess the long-term effects\u201d of the decision on consumers and industry.<\/p>\n What about tire safety? <\/p>\n Some have raised concerns that more expensive tires would lead to people who can least afford to change them to delay replacement purchases, potentially leading to unsafe road conditions. <\/p>\n The CEC responded to another question about tire lifespan<\/a>, saying that based on its testing, \u201cWith advances in tire technology, replacement tires can now achieve strong performance on both lifespan and efficiency.\u201d<\/p>\n The state also said<\/a> the proposed standard creates a \u201cminimum wet grip standard that will remove some of the least-safe, worst-performing tires from the road.\u201d<\/p>\n So what\u2019s next? <\/p>\n CEC Vice Chairman Siva Gunda said conversations with the industry would be ongoing as the rule takes effect.<\/p>\n Tire shops and manufacturers will need to follow this rule starting in 2029. <\/p>\n See more coverage of top California stories here<\/a> | Download our app<\/a> | Subscribe to our morning newsletter<\/a> | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel<\/a> | Make KCRA a preferred news source in Google<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What to know about California\u2019s groundbreaking and polarizing new tire replacement rules Regulators with the California Energy Commission…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":440265,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[4817,172974,7,14598,9,8,172981,174570,1586,3413,7948,174569,174573,164028,36863,83408,73155,172978,457,96847,21403,174572,32627,174567,174566,14310,146188,121,127530,10585,280,172973,174568,174571,72],"class_list":["post-440264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-california","tag-air-quality","tag-bridgestone","tag-california","tag-california-energy-commission","tag-california-headlines","tag-california-news","tag-cec","tag-co2-emissions","tag-commission","tag-concern","tag-consumer","tag-consumer-costs","tag-dunlop","tag-electricity-cost","tag-energy-efficiency","tag-first-phase","tag-first-state","tag-gas-savings","tag-gavin-newsom","tag-goodyear","tag-industry","tag-michelin-north-america","tag-new-rule","tag-new-tire-standards","tag-replacement-tire-rules","tag-road","tag-rolling-resistance","tag-sacramento","tag-siva-gunda","tag-standard","tag-tire","tag-tire-efficiency","tag-tire-sales","tag-ustma","tag-year"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=440264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440264\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/440265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=440264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=440264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=440264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}