Tesla is urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to maintain its authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, placing the electric automaker in direct conflict with the Trump administration’s efforts to scale back climate rules.
In recently disclosed comments to the EPA, Tesla defended the 2009 “endangerment finding,” which determined that greenhouse gases threaten human health and welfare and provided the legal foundation for regulating vehicle emissions. The company argued that the finding is “based on a robust factual and scientific record” and that eliminating it would undermine billions invested in electric vehicle development.
“The Endangerment Finding — and the vehicle emissions standards which flow from it — have provided a stable regulatory platform for Tesla’s extensive investments in product development and production,” the company said.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, however, has called the 2009 finding the “holy grail of the climate change religion” and is moving to rescind it. In August, the agency proposed rolling back the endangerment finding and eliminating federal emissions standards for cars and trucks altogether. Zeldin argued that the original decision never made a direct link between carbon dioxide emissions and endangerment, and that recent Supreme Court rulings limiting agency powers strengthen the case for repeal.
Tesla’s stance not only rejects the repeal of the endangerment finding but also opposes eliminating vehicle emissions rules entirely. While acknowledging that current standards could be simplified, Tesla insisted that the EPA has both the “authority and obligation” to regulate greenhouse gases from motor vehicles.
Environmental groups and Democratic lawmakers echoed Tesla’s objections, warning that rolling back the EPA’s authority would cripple efforts to reduce emissions from the transportation sector — the nation’s largest source of greenhouse gases.
The clash underscores a growing divide between the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda and companies like Tesla that have financially benefited from government-backed climate policies. The outcome could reshape the legal and regulatory framework that has guided U.S. climate and energy policy for more than a decade.
