River Bend Times

Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has raised concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed EV Rule, citing a $224 billion increase in the deficit over ten years. Grassley highlighted the impact of higher electric vehicle tax credit claims and reduced gas tax revenues, with the CBO attributing the largest share of the deficit increase to the EPA's market-shifting EV Rule.

“The American taxpayers have not voted for and can’t afford the EPA’s proposed EV Rule,” Grassley emphasized in a letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan.

In addition to fiscal implications, Grassley also pointed out challenges for auto dealers and questioned the legal basis for the EPA's proposal. He called on the EPA to clarify its legal authority for promoting the EV Rule and provide details on how it plans to offset the lost tax revenue and increased spending.

The EPA’s EV Rule extends greenhouse gas standards to passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks for model years 2023-2026, aiming for electric vehicles to make up 60 percent of vehicle sales by 2030. Grassley has persistently urged the EPA to reconsider the rule, expressing concerns about reliance on Chinese lithium-ion batteries, exploitation of foreign workers, and potential strain on the electric grid.

Grassley's efforts to address these issues include multiple letters to the EPA and calls for a reassessment of the mass-scale transition to EVs without adequate infrastructure. He has also warned about the destabilizing impact of EPA's rulemaking on power plants that do not meet strict emissions standards.

The concerns raised by Grassley underscore the potential financial and practical challenges associated with the Biden administration's push for electric vehicles.