The largest national petroleum trade organization, including ExxonMobil and Chevron, will file a federal lawsuit on Thursday in an attempt to stop the Biden administration's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light trucks and encourage the production of electric vehicles.
In March, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued new exhaust regulations requiring national automakers to produce and sell more electric vehicles to meet the new standards. Under these regulations, the government expects electric vehicle sales to account for 56% of total sales between 2030 and 2032.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) stated that the EPA has exceeded its congressional authority, and this regulation will phase out most new fuel cars and conventional hybrid vehicles from the U.S. market within less than a decade.
"Today, we are taking action to protect American consumers, American manufacturing workers, and our nation's hard-earned energy security from the impact of this excessive government intervention," said API Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Counsel Ryan Meyers.
The lawsuit will be filed in the Washington D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The National Corn Growers Association and the American Farm Bureau Federation will join API as co-plaintiffs. These two groups rely on fuel cars to support the corn ethanol industry.
"By approving exhaust standards that focus solely on electric vehicles, the EPA has ignored the significant role of corn ethanol in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and addressing climate change," said Harold Wolle, a Minnesota farmer and president of the National Corn Growers Association.
