Earlier this month, the U.S. House of Representatives spoke loud and clear on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) planned electric vehicle mandate policies, successfully passing HR 4468, the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act. The CARS Act would prohibit EPA from implementing its new aggressive vehicle tailpipe emission standards that would severely limit consumer choice, forcing Americans to buy electric vehicles (EVs), drastically decreasing internal combustion engines. The CARS Act would also prevent the EPA from implementing future vehicle emissions standards that would mandate certain technologies or restrict vehicles based on engine type.  

Building ethanol market demand continues to be a top priority for IL Corn. EPA’s latest tailpipe standards represent a significant threat to consumer choice but also threaten corn farmers' livelihoods by forcing Americans to buy EVs, thus negatively impacting demand for ethanol and other biofuels. Illinois corn farmers participated in two calls to action earlier this year, commenting to both EPA and to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) that their proposed rules and EV mandates would not work in rural America. 

The CARS act now heads to the U.S. Senate for consideration.