Trump EPA kills Obama-era emissions policy to boost auto industry, save taxpayers $1.3 trillion

The Trump administration announced Thursday that an Obama-era climate change policy has been terminated, citing federal regulatory overreach. The decision, aimed at benefiting the automotive industry, could save American taxpayers $1.3 trillion.

President Donald Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin informed reporters about the repeal during a White House press conference. The repeal targets a policy that allowed the federal government to regulate fossil fuel emissions by declaring them a threat to public health, otherwise known as an "endangerment finding."

"Today, the Trump EPA has finalized the single largest act of deregulation in the history of the United States of America," said EPA Administrator Zeldin. "Referred to by some as the holy grail of federal regulatory overreach, the 2009 Obama EPA endangerment finding is now eliminated."

Obama's Clean Air Act allowed the government to regulate six greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane. Trump referred to the policy as "disastrous" for the automotive industry and its consumers, explaining that it drove up prices.

As a result, the president said his administration is "terminating all additional green emission standards imposed unnecessarily on vehicle models and engines between 2012 and 2027 and beyond." The move could lower car costs by an average of $2,400, Zeldin added, explaining that the termination would also ease a burden on manufacturers who have been forced to compile extensive emissions reports. 

"Under the endangerment finding, they forced the hated start-stop feature onto American consumers, which unnecessarily shuts off a car's engine. When you stop at a red light, in other words, the engine goes off. That's great," said Trump.