Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Newsom Moves to Ban Sale of New Gas-Powered Cars in California
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
September 23, 2020

Share

California will halt sales of new gasoline-powered passenger cars and trucks by 2035, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday, a move he says will cut greenhouse gas emissions by 35% in the nation’s most populous state.

The proposed rule would not ban people from owning gas-powered cars or selling them on the used car market. But it would end the sales of all new gasoline-powered passenger cars and trucks in the state of nearly 40 million people.

“Pull away from the gas pumps,” Newsom said. “Let us no longer be victims of geopolitical dictators that manipulate global supply chains and global markets.”

California and the roughly dozen states that follow its lead on auto emissions standards make up a significant part of the U.S. auto market, giving the day’s move huge potential impact for the U.S. automobile industry as well as for long-term efforts against pollution and climate change, which is driven by fossil-fuel emissions. It also is likely to meet opposition from President Donald Trump, who wants to roll back tougher Obama-era auto emissions standards and is battling California to force it to comply.

California already has rules mandating a certain percentage of new car sales must be electric or zero-emission vehicles. This rule, if implemented, would make California the first U.S. state with a plan to phase them out completely.

At least 15 other countries have already made similar commitments, including Germany, France and Norway.

Newsom’s order directs the California Air Resources Board to develop and approve regulations to meet the 2035 deadline. He also ordered them to make a rule requiring all medium and heavy-duty trucks be 100% zero-emission vehicles by 2045 “where feasible.”

In this July 19, 2019 file photo, a Tesla vehicle charges at a Tesla Supercharger site in Charlotte, N.C. Tesla owners can now buy insurance policies from the electric car company in what may be an essential step toward it selling driverless vehicles. The company says it’s now selling policies in California and will go nationwide at an undisclosed date. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)

Fracking Is a Technique That Allows Energy Companies to Extract Huge Volumes of Oil and Gas

Newsom also directed state agencies to speed up development of charging stations across the state and called on the Legislature to eliminate new fracking licenses by 2024.

Fracking is a technique that allows energy companies to extract huge volumes of oil and gas from shale rock deep underground. It involves injecting high-pressure mixtures of water, sand or gravel and chemicals into rock. Fracking opponents say the chemicals involved threaten water supplies and public health.

Kassie Siegel, director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s Climate Law Institute, called Newsom’s order “a big step” but said it “provided rhetoric rather than real action on the other critical half of the climate problem — California’s dirty oil production.”

“Newsom can’t claim climate leadership while handing out permits to oil companies to drill and frack,” she said. “He has the power to protect Californians from oil industry pollution, and he needs to use it, not pass the buck.”

California has a goal of relying 100% on clean, renewable energy by 2045. Gasoline and diesel-powered cars and trucks are the biggest impediment to reaching that goal as they account for more than half of the state’s carbon pollution.

The order comes as massive wildfires have burned a record 5,600 square miles (14,500 square kilometers) in California this year. Experts say the size and intensity of the fires are aided by warmer temperatures and years of drought brought on by climate change.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Clovis Unified Faces Lawsuit Alleging Years of Neglect and Sexual Abuse at Fancher Creek

DON'T MISS

Suspect in Bombing at California Fertility Clinic Dies in Federal Custody

DON'T MISS

US Airstrikes Failed to Destroy Iran’s Nuclear Sites, Sources Say

DON'T MISS

Stephen Miller Expands Power in Second Trump Term, Defies Legal Limits

DON'T MISS

FTA Unloads on Fresno Unified After Skipping External Search for Chief Academic Officer

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Dies After Alleyway Attack. Police Investigating

DON'T MISS

Poll: Most Californians Prefer Lower Taxes and Fewer Services, Skeptical of Gov’t Spending

DON'T MISS

Suspect Identified in Fresno Parking Lot Murder

DON'T MISS

Nasdaq 100 Notches First Record High Close Since February

DON'T MISS

Things Netanyahu Might Say if Injected With Truth Serum

UP NEXT

Poll: Most Californians Prefer Lower Taxes and Fewer Services, Skeptical of Gov’t Spending

UP NEXT

Clovis Man Sentenced to 8 Years in Federal Prison in Deadly Fentanyl Case

UP NEXT

Victims Identified as Death Toll Climbs to 8 in Lake Tahoe Boating Tragedy

UP NEXT

Dying Honey Bees Threaten CA Economy. Can Central Valley Lawmakers Save Them?

UP NEXT

PG&E Is Hiring an Executive Bodyguard. Combat Shooting Experience Required

UP NEXT

Florida to Build ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detention Center for Migrants in Everglades

UP NEXT

6 Dead After Boat Capsizes on Lake Tahoe

UP NEXT

Americans Worry Conflict With Iran Could Escalate, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

UP NEXT

Advisory Warns of ‘Heightened Threat Environment’ in US After Iran Strikes

UP NEXT

LA Dodgers Pledge $1 Million to Support Families Impacted by ICE Raids

Stephen Miller Expands Power in Second Trump Term, Defies Legal Limits

1 hour ago

FTA Unloads on Fresno Unified After Skipping External Search for Chief Academic Officer

1 hour ago

Fresno Man Dies After Alleyway Attack. Police Investigating

2 hours ago

Poll: Most Californians Prefer Lower Taxes and Fewer Services, Skeptical of Gov’t Spending

2 hours ago

Suspect Identified in Fresno Parking Lot Murder

2 hours ago

Nasdaq 100 Notches First Record High Close Since February

2 hours ago

Things Netanyahu Might Say if Injected With Truth Serum

2 hours ago

US to Give $30 Million to Gaza Aid Operation Despite Violence Concerns

3 hours ago

US Senate Adjusting Rooftop Solar Language in Budget Bill, Senator Says

3 hours ago

Early US Intel Assessment Suggests Strikes on Iran Did Not Destroy Nuclear Sites, CNN Reports

3 hours ago

Clovis Unified Faces Lawsuit Alleging Years of Neglect and Sexual Abuse at Fancher Creek

A class action lawsuit has been filed against Clovis Unified School District alleging neglect by school personnel and sexual abuse committed...

15 minutes ago

15 minutes ago

Clovis Unified Faces Lawsuit Alleging Years of Neglect and Sexual Abuse at Fancher Creek

California Fertility Clinic Bombing Investigation
42 minutes ago

Suspect in Bombing at California Fertility Clinic Dies in Federal Custody

A missile launched from Iran towards Israel is seen from Tubas, amid the Iran-Israel conflict, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta
48 minutes ago

US Airstrikes Failed to Destroy Iran’s Nuclear Sites, Sources Say

Stephen Miller has emerged as a powerful and controversial force in Trump’s second term, driving aggressive immigration policies and defying legal boundaries while expanding his influence across the administration. (Shutterstock)
1 hour ago

Stephen Miller Expands Power in Second Trump Term, Defies Legal Limits

1 hour ago

FTA Unloads on Fresno Unified After Skipping External Search for Chief Academic Officer

Fresno police are investigating the fatal assault of Elias Santiago-Pedro, 46, who was found injured in an alley on Sunday, June 22, 2025, and later died at the hospital. (Fresno PD)
2 hours ago

Fresno Man Dies After Alleyway Attack. Police Investigating

A new PPIC poll shows 55% of Californians prefer lower taxes and fewer government services, reflecting growing skepticism toward government spending. (Shutterstock)
2 hours ago

Poll: Most Californians Prefer Lower Taxes and Fewer Services, Skeptical of Gov’t Spending

The Fresno Police Department is looking for Raymond Ornelas Torres, 41, who is a suspect in the murder of Julian Garcia, 27. (Fresno PD)
2 hours ago

Suspect Identified in Fresno Parking Lot Murder

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend