Overview
- Filed March 12 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, the case (No. 26-at-00450) was brought by DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division on behalf of NHTSA and names the California Air Resources Board and its executive officer as defendants.
- The suit targets California’s Advanced Clean Cars program, including fleetwide CO2 limits and zero‑emission vehicle sales requirements that ramp from roughly 35% in model year 2026 to 100% by 2035.
- Federal officials contend California’s rules are preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, would create a patchwork of state requirements, raise vehicle prices, and interfere with interstate commerce.
- California leaders have called the lawsuit federal overreach and say they will vigorously defend the state’s clean‑car standards as separate litigation over last year’s Congressional Review Act revocations proceeds in the Ninth Circuit.
- The government seeks declaratory judgments and permanent injunctions to bar enforcement of the challenged rules and to prevent adoption of future iterations, with potential impacts on automakers and the many states that follow California’s standards.