California plans to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered passenger cars and trucks starting in 2035 in a dramatic move to shift to electric vehicles and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The move would be the most significant to date by a US state aimed at ending the use of internal combustion engines for passenger travel.
California is the largest US auto market, accounting for about 11 percent of all US vehicle sales.
President Trump has sought to bar California from requiring the sale of electric vehicles, while his rival Joe Biden has pledged to spend billions to speed the adoption of electric vehicles.
California’s clean vehicle goals have not always come to pass and in some cases have been pushed back.
California Air Resources Board also plans to mandate by 2045 that all operations of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles be zero emission where feasible.
The executive order does not prevent Californians from owning gasoline-powered cars or selling them on the used car market.
In response to a record wildfire season in the state, the governor said earlier this month California needed to “fast track” its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change. “Across the entire spectrum, our goals are inadequate to the reality we are experiencing,” he said on Sept. 11 while touring a burned area in the state.
A group representing major automakers including General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen said “neither mandates nor bans build successful markets.”
The group noted electrified vehicles account for less than 10 percent of new vehicle sales in California, which is still best in the United States.
California and nearly two dozen other US states have sued the Trump administration, which has rolled back Obama era vehicle emissions standards and sought to undo California’s authority to set strict car pollution rules.