By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters] – Tuesday’s decision by the Biden Administration reversed a regulation issued by Donald Trump to prevent California from implementing its vehicle emission regulations.

According to the Department of Transportation, final rules were being issued to rescind the Trump-inspired Trump decision. This was to prevent the largest state in the country from setting vehicle regulations that could conflict with federal authority to establish Corporate Average Fuel Economy requirements (CAFE).

Since 1975, the program sets requirements for vehicle fuel efficiency.

“States can now actively pursue solutions to address the climate crisis and environmental challenges in their communities,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.

A pair of Trump-related actions, which sought to eliminate California’s vehicle emission regulations, were blocked by nearly two dozen U.S. state attorneys. The effort was supported by major automakers. California was often at odds with the Republican President.

Soon after Democrat Joe Biden was elected president in November 2020, General Motors Co (NYSE:) reversed course and opted to no longer back the Trump administration’s effort to bar California from setting its own emissions rules.

Separately the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, (EPA), has attempted to reverse Trump Administration’s 2019 decision not to give California legal authority for vehicle emission rules to be set and to establish zero-emission mandates.

California was granted a waiver by the EPA for tailpipe greenhouse gases emissions and zero-emission vehicle regulations in 2013.

California’s Vehicle-Emission Rules have been adopted by 14 states, while 11 other states have adopted the Zero-Emission Vehicle mandate.

The EPA has finalized vehicle emission requirements for 2026. This will reverse Trump’s decision to roll back car pollution reductions and accelerate the U.S. transition to electric cars (EVs). According to the EPA, this rule will decrease U.S. gasoline consumption 15% by 2050. That’s more than 440,000,000 barrels.

The EPA regulations would produce a real-world average of 40 mpg for new cars or trucks if expressed as miles per gallon requirements (mpg). This compares to 38 mpg with the August proposal, and 32 mpg with the Trump rules.

Biden would like to see 50% of the new vehicles in 2030 be electric or hybrid, however, he hasn’t endorsed California’s plan to end gasoline-powered light-duty cars by 2035.

Next year, the Transportation Department is expected to complete its revision of CAFE standards.