Congress tries to block California's stricter car pollution rules
S.J.Res. 207 — A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to "California State Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Standards; Notice of Decision Granting a Waiver of Clean Air Act Preemption for California's Advanced Clean Car Program and a Within the Scope Conformation for California's Zero Emission Vehicle Amendments for 2017 and Earlier Model Years". · Filed by Pete Ricketts (R-NE) · 10 cosponsors · Introduced Aug 5, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill would reject an EPA choice from 2013. That choice let California set its own car pollution rules. California's rules are stricter than national rules. If it passes, California could no longer enforce its Advanced Clean Car Program. California could no longer enforce its zero-pollution vehicle rules. Cars sold in California would have to follow lower national pollution rules instead.
Who it affects
People in California would breathe air with more car pollution. Twelve other states that follow California's pollution rules would also be hit. Car makers would not have to make cars as clean for the U.S. market.
One thing to notice
The bill targets a waiver from 2013. It does not say if it would affect cars already sold under California's rules or only new cars.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
10 cosponsors: 10 Republicans.
- Aug 5, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Aug 5, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- waiver — Permission to skip a rule that normally applies to everyone
- Advanced Clean Car Program — California's rules that require cleaner cars and more zero-pollution vehicles
- zero-pollution vehicle — A car that makes no dirty air when it runs
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,925 characters) on Aug 8, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,707 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-23.
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