GOP leaders announced intentions to decouple Virginia from other states’ vehicle emissions rule

RICHMOND, Va. — On Friday, the leaders of the Republican Party in Virginia said that they want to amend the law so that the state would no longer comply with the stringent rules that California has in place for vehicle emissions.

The West Coast state’s emission standards were accepted by Virginia as part of legislation that was passed the previous year. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the Republicans in the House of Delegates both announced on Friday that they will work to decouple Virginia’s standards from those of other states.

“House Republicans will advance legislation in 2023 to put Virginians back in charge of Virginia’s auto emission standards and its vehicle marketplace. Virginia is not, and should not be, California,” House Speaker Todd Gilbert said in a statement.

Youngkin said that he was “already at work to prevent this ridiculous edict from being forced on Virginians.”

This comes after attorneys and government officials from the state weighed in earlier this week and said that Virginia is likely to follow the new rules that California has put in place.

According to these rules, by the year 2035, all new cars, trucks, and SUVs that are sold in the state are required to be driven by either electricity or hydrogen.