On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution opposing a federal rule mandating states to monitor and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles on national highways.
The rule, set by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), was recently deemed unlawful by a federal judge, pending a possible appeal. President Joe Biden’s administration aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 to mitigate the effects of climate change.
The Senate voted 53-47 to reject the FHWA rules, with some Democrats and Republicans crossing party lines. However, the House of Representatives has yet to vote on the resolution.
The Biden administration has expressed intentions to veto the measure if it reaches the President’s desk, as it views the rule as an essential tool for transparently managing transportation emissions.
Republicans argue that the FHWA lacked authority to establish these rules, viewing the resolution as a message to the administration to prevent executive overreach. The decision to overturn the rules followed a lawsuit from Texas, where a federal judge ruled the regulation unauthorized.
The FHWA’s rule allowed state transportation departments flexibility in setting appropriate emission reduction targets without imposing penalties for non-compliance.
While the agency aimed for emissions reduction, it did not mandate specific targets aligned with the 2050 net-zero goal.
In 2018, the Trump administration repealed a similar rule issued by former President Barack Obama, which required states to monitor greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles on national highways.
