GM EV Proposal May Sound Good, But Vehicle Electrification plans are the Devil in the Details.

General Motors has proposed what it’s calling a “National Zero Emission Vehicle (NZEV) program”. One that would require automakers to sell a minimum volume of plug-in or fuel cell vehicles.

While this may sound like an innovative idea, it could also dramatically undercut programs. Programs run also by states including California and New York. Ones that are showing real leadership in furthermore cutting vehicle emissions.

State leadership on vehicle electrification is the reason there are now over 40 electric vehicle models. All available in the U.S. Most noteworthy is we are expected to hit the 2 million EVs sold soon enough.

GM’s proposal would represent less than 5 percent of new vehicle sales in 2025. Furthermore, is much weaker than what states have on the books. California electric vehicle sales are already at 6 percent today. Current requirements in California and nine other states require about 8 percent ZEV sales by 2025.

Advancing vehicle electrification is important. However a national ZEV program is no replacement for the aggressive vehicle electrification. Likening just fuel efficiency and carbon emission standards we have on the books today is not enough.

That’s because the majority of vehicles that sold over the next decade will be gasoline powered. Moreover there are proven, cost-effective technologies available that will cut gasoline costs for millions of Americans.

GM should focused on meeting and beating existing standards and reject the Trump administration’s proposed rollback which would:

• result in an extra 2.2 billion metric tons of global warming emissions by 2040—that’s 170 million metric tons in 2040 alone, equal to keeping 43 coal-fired power plants online;

• mean cars and trucks will use an extra 200 billion gallons of gasoline by 2040—that’s as much oil as we’ve imported from the Persian Gulf since the standards were first finalized in 2010;

• cost consumers hundreds of billions of dollars—in 2040 alone, consumers will spend an extra $55 billion at the pump if these standards rolled back;

• cut employment, economy-wide, by 60,000 in 2025 and 126,000 in 2035;

• reduce gross domestic product by $8 billion in both 2025 and 2035.

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