Congress

The Clean Transportation for All (CTFA) campaign worked closely with Sierra Club’s Federal Policy team and state chapters to secure strong transportation electrification provisions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The IIJA provides billions of dollars in funding that can be used for clean transportation priorities such as electric school buses, electric transit buses, highway and community charging infrastructure, and reconnecting communities.  

The CTFA campaign, Federal Policy team, and state chapters also played a critical role in passing the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022, which provides key incentives for new and used electric vehicles (EVs) and funds programs to electrify port equipment and heavy-duty vehicles. Numerous independent analyses have projected that passage and effective implementation of IIJA and IRA will significantly accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles.

The maps below show projections of EV adoption rates by Rhodium Group before and after the passage of the IRA, demonstrating that passage of the IRA increased the projected EV share of new light-duty vehicle sales in 2030 for every state nationwide. 

EV share of new light-duty vehicle sales in 2030, as projected by Rhodium Group immediately before and after the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, under their mid emissions scenario. The projected EV sales share increased in every state after the passage of the IRA. (1)

Now, CTFA and the Environmental Law Program (ELP) are urging federal agencies to implement strong federal programs to maximize the benefits of the IIJA and the IRA. We are engaging with:

• The Department of Transportation, by pushing for a robust and equitable EV highway charging and community charging program, and Low- and No-Emission Transit Bus Grants;
• The Environmental Protection Agency, by making the Clean School Bus Program, Clean Ports Program, and Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Program as strong as possible;
• The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service, by ensuring EV rebates are broadly accessible. 

CTFA, in partnership with ELP and state chapters, also plays a leadership role across the country working with state agencies to maximize their utilization of IRA and IIJA funds for transportation electrification.

Regulatory Agencies

CTFA and ELP are deeply engaged in advocating for strong tailpipe emission regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and strong fuel economy regulations from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This includes more protective emission reduction requirements for carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides, as well as higher fuel economy standards.

In addition to urging the EPA to adopt the strongest standards, CTFA has pushed the auto industry to support the EPA standards. We’ve worked in coalition to demonstrate the powerful public support for the standards, and we’re often in the media with an accountability narrative, spreading the message that automakers are not moving quickly enough to electrify.

Whereas IIJA and IRA create financial incentives for transportation electrification, EPA’s rules provide regulatory requirements to ensure compliance with minimum federal air quality standards for smog. These policies, along with IIJA and IRA, intentionally operate independently of each other, but with overlapping effects accelerating EV adoption. This provides different legal bases for transportation electrification policies, helping to ensure their resilience against challenge.

The first chart shows illustrative pathways of U.S. light- and medium-duty EV sales and stock shares with and without the EPA’s tailpipe emissions standard finalized in March 2024. A higher EV sales share in the near term is crucial to ensure that as much of the country’s vehicle stock on the road as possible is electric by mid-century. The second chart shows the net impact of the rule on vehicle carbon dioxide emissions, as projected by the EPA. (2)

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2. Federal Electric Vehicle Advocacy