During a recent hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, EPA chief Michael Regan got an earful from Wyoming GOP Senator Cynthia Lummis as she expressed her displeasure about overreach at the EPA, specifically on electric vehicles and the Biden administration’s push to force their use by regulation.
“The average EV is over $10,000 more expensive than the average gas-powered car, and they don’t work at altitude. They don’t work when it’s that cold. And they don’t work when you can’t get them charged because there are no charging stations.”
Biden’s EPA has proposed tough new auto pollution rules that could force EVs to make up two-thirds of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2032. Lummis says this just won’t work for rural communities like hers in Wyoming.
“People in Wyoming frequently drive long distances. My ranch and my farm are 400 miles apart, and yet they’re still in Wyoming. Their livelihoods depend on affordable, reliable vehicles. And that means a gas- or diesel-powered car, truck, or natural gas.”
Biden officials, including USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, defend EVs to boost manufacturing jobs and reduce climate pollution. Lummis told EPA’s Regan consumers feel differently.
“Judging by the numbers, Americans don’t want EVs. EV sales are around six or seven percent. And dealerships are saying to pump the brakes on electric vehicles. For the good of the country, pull the plug on this mandate.”
The ethanol industry argues hybrid flex-fuel vehicles make more sense. The Renewable Fuels Association road-tested one last year and says it got 440 miles with a full tank of E85 and a full charge—nearly double that of a comparable electric vehicle.
Source: NAFB News Service
