President Donald Trump has repealed the scientific finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health and eliminated federal tailpipe emissions standards for cars and trucks, in what the administration described as the largest deregulatory action in U.S. history.
The move rescinds the 2009 “endangerment finding,” adopted during the presidency of Barack Obama, which enabled the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. The repeal also ends federal greenhouse gas emissions standards for vehicles.
“Under the process just completed by the EPA, we are officially terminating the so-called endangerment finding, a disastrous Obama-era policy that severely damaged the American auto industry and drove up prices for American consumers,” Trump said, calling it the biggest deregulatory action in U.S. history.
The EPA said the finding relied on what it described as an incorrect interpretation of federal clean air laws, arguing those laws were intended to address pollutants that cause local or regional harm, not global climate warming. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called the repeal the elimination of what some referred to as the “holy grail of federal regulatory overreach.”
The endangerment finding followed a 2007 Supreme Court ruling in Massachusetts v. EPA, which determined the agency had authority to regulate greenhouse gases. Its repeal removes requirements to measure, report, certify and comply with federal greenhouse gas standards for vehicles, though it may not initially apply to stationary sources such as power plants.
The EPA said ending the finding and vehicle emissions standards would save U.S. taxpayers $1.3 trillion. By contrast, under former President Joe Biden, the agency projected that stricter vehicle rules would generate $99 billion in annual net benefits through 2055, including fuel and maintenance savings for consumers.
The rollback has drawn sharp criticism from environmental groups. The Environmental Defense Fund warned the decision would increase pollution and costs for families. The Natural Resources Defense Council and Earthjustice said they would challenge the move in court.
Legal experts say the repeal could trigger years of litigation, potentially reaching the Supreme Court. Former President Obama criticized the decision, saying it would leave Americans “less safe, less healthy and less able to fight climate change.”
Industry reaction was mixed. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation noted that previous emissions regulations were difficult to meet given current electric vehicle demand but did not explicitly endorse rescinding the finding. Meanwhile, coal industry representatives welcomed the move, saying it could slow planned retirements of coal-fired power plants.
