SEMA Fires Warning Shot to California’s Gavin Newsom
[Sept. 24, 2020]
It didn’t take long for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) to go on the offensive following California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Sept. 23, 2020, Executive Order to ban the sale of ICE cars in the Golden State by 2035.
SEMA is well known for its automotive aftermarket-friendly DC lobbying efforts, so it was no surprise that SEMA would battle this order. SEMA also chose not to mince words.
On Sept. 23, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an Executive Order that would ban the sale of ICE passenger vehicles by 2035. SEMA plans to challenge the order.
“California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a controversial Executive Order this week instructing the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to draft regulations requiring that all new cars and passenger trucks sold in the state be zero-emissions by 2035,” SEMA said in a statement.
“SEMA is deeply disappointed in Governor Newsom’s decision to escalate his ongoing feud with the Trump administration at the expense of the consumer and California’s small businesses,” said Daniel Ingber, SEMA vice president of government and legal affairs. “SEMA will work with the industry and enthusiasts in opposing the Governor’s proposal on all fronts.”
According to SEMA, California’s zero emission vehicle program falls within the state’s greenhouse gas rule, and this rule is currently being challenged by the White House. “The federal government is seeking to withdraw EPA recognition of the California rule under the Clean Air Act because it effectively establishes fuel economy standards which are the sole jurisdiction of the federal government,” SEMA states, noting the challenge could eventually be decided by the Supreme Court.
Considering the Trump administration and fellow Republicans are pushing to fill the now-vacant Supreme Court seat left by the recent passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg prior to the November election, the coming weeks and months – and the legal battles that ensue – could lay the groundwork for the future of zero emission vehicles in not only California, but the entire U.S., for decades to come.
(Main image courtesy SEMA)
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