House votes to block Biden EV rule

The House on Wednesday voted in favor of blocking a Biden administration rule that’s expected to shift car sales in the U.S. significantly toward electric vehicles. 

The vote was 221-197.

The rule in question could move car sales as far as to reach two-thirds electric by 2032.

The bill approved by House Republicans on Wednesday would also bar the Environmental Protection Agency from pursuing any rules that result in limited availability of gas-powered cars. 

Despite its House passage, the legislation is not expected to gain traction in the Democratically-controlled Senate. The White House has already threatened to veto it.

In its veto threat statement, The White House defended the rule as being “projected to save Americans $12,000 over the lifetime of a new light-duty vehicle by accelerating adoption of technologies that reduce fuel and maintenance costs alongside pollution.”

It also lamented other provisions of the GOP bill that it said would “catastrophically impair EPA’s ability to issue automotive regulations that protect public health, save consumers money, strengthen American energy security, and protect American investments in the vehicle technologies of the future.”

Republicans have criticized the EPA’s rule, saying that it is forcing a shift to electric vehicles that consumers do not want. 

Bill sponsor Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) said during a Wednesday press conference that “this standard…is unattainable, it’s unaffordable and in fact it’s unrealistic.”

“It takes away what we've always thought of as one of the most important principles of Americanism, and that's choice," he said.

Members of the GOP are also trying to push for language to block the rule in an upcoming appropriations bill, with at least one member saying they would consider voting against a funding bill if it does not contain such a provision.