Energy & Environment — Trump undercuts Biden fuel economy rules

View Online Energy & Environment Energy & Environment The Big Story  Trump goes after Biden car efficiency rules The Trump administration on Friday took a step to undermine a Biden-era rules tightening car fuel efficiency requirements. © Getty Images The Transportation Department published an interpretive rule that says the Biden administration improperly considered electric vehicles as a way to make vehicle fleets more efficient   While this determination does not formally end the Biden-era rule, the Trump administration indicated that while the rulemaking process plays out, it may not enforce the Biden-era standards.   "Pending the rulemaking process for the establishment of replacement standards, [the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration] will exercise its enforcement authority with regard to all existing … standards in accordance with the interpretation set forth in this rule," it stated.   Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a statement accused the previous administration of trying to push an electric vehicle "mandate."   "Under President Trump's leadership, we are making vehicles more affordable and easier to manufacture in the United States," Duffy said. "The previous administration illegally used [Corporate Average Fuel Economy] standards as an electric vehicle mandate."   The Biden administration issued a rule requiring cars to be about 2 percent more fuel efficient each year while heavy duty pickup trucks and vans would have to be 10 percent more efficient each year from 2030 to 2032 and 8 percent more efficient in the years after.   Read more at TheHill.com. Welcome to The Hill's Energy & Environment newsletter, I'm Rachel Frazin  — keeping you up to speed on the policies impacting everything from oil and gas to new supply chains. Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. Essential Reads  How policy will affect the energy and environment sectors now and in the future: Freedom Caucus warns it will 'not accept' Senate changes on green energy tax credits The conservative House Freedom Caucus said Friday it would "not accept" changes that "water down" its cuts to green energy tax credits as the Senate weighs whether to alter parts of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.  Full Story Senate Republicans propose eliminating penalties for violating fuel efficiency rules Senate Republicans are proposing to terminate penalties for automakers whose fleets are not efficient enough to meet national standards.  Full Story Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels break seasonal records: NOAA Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide made history last month by climbing to their highest seasonal peak available in historical records, a team of researchers reported.  Full Story In Other News  Branch out with a different read from The Hill: With hurricane season underway, Gulf Coast worries FEMA, Weather Service aren't ready With hurricane season officially underway, worries are mounting around whether President Trump's cuts to the federal government have endangered the nation's disaster response. The concern is particularly … Full Story What We're Reading  News we've flagged from other outlets touching on energy issues, the environment and other topics: N.J. will give residents at least $100 credit to help pay for soaring electric bill bills, governor says (NJ.com)   The Missing Engineers (Bloomberg) On Our Radar  Upcoming news themes and events we're watching:  Tuesday The House Energy and Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the Energy Department's budget   Wednesday Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz will appear before the Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss his agency's budget   Leaders of the Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation will appear before the Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss their agencies' budgets.    Thursday Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is slated to appear before the House Natural Resources Committee in a hearing on Interior's budget   The House Science, Space and Technology Committee will hold a hearing titled "Powering Demand: Nuclear Solutions for AI Infrastructure"   The Senate Science, Commerce and Transportation Committee will hold a hearing titled "Finding Nemo's Future: Conflicts over Ocean Resources" What Others are Reading  Two key stories on The Hill right now: Hegseth could be 'on the hook' for hundreds of millions on Qatari jet, says Raskin The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee has warned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that he could be "on the hook" for hundreds of millions of dollars for having accepted a luxury jet from the Qatari government.  Read more Supreme Court hands DOGE big wins in Social Security, records cases The Supreme Court on Friday handed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) two major victories in its expanding legal battle over drastic efforts to reshape the federal bureaucracy.   Read more   You're all caught up. See you Monday!  Check out The Hill's Energy & Environment page for the latest coverage. Like this newsletter? Take a moment to view our other topical products here 📩 Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  400 N Capitol Street NW Suite 650, Washington, DC 20001 Copyright © 1998 - 2025 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved.

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