CARB proposes to phase out gasoline-fueled vehicles by 2035

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has introduced a plan to accelerate sales of electric and zero-emission vehicles while phasing out the sale of gasoline-fueled vehicles by 2035. The California Air Resources Board is the “clean air agency” of the state of California in the United States.

The CARB proposal would require 35% of new passenger vehicle sales to be powered by batteries or hydrogen by 2026, and 100% of sales to be net-zero emission vehicles less than a decade later. By 2030, zero-emissions sales will account for 68% of total sales, according to the proposal.

Shifting the transportation sector to cleaner energy is a key component of the state’s plan to combat climate change, as cars, trucks, and other vehicles represent roughly 40% of its pollution.

Electric vehicle sales in the U.S. state has risen to 12.4% of total sales in 2021, up 7.8% from the previous year.

The board is expected to vote on the proposal in August. At least 15 states, including New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, have adopted California’s vehicle standards on prior clean-car rules.

The CARB proposal follows California Governor Gavin Newsom’s executive order in 2020 that called for phasing out new cars with internal combustion engines within 15 years by requiring that all such vehicle sales produce zero emissions by 2035.