New Stringent Tire Regulations Set to Limit New Tire Options in California
The rule adds a leaf rating system and phases in stricter replacement tire requirements that regulators say could cut 2 million tons of carbon dioxide a year.
- On Monday, the California Energy Commission unanimously approved the nation's first tire efficiency standards, with Commission Chair David Hochschild stating the action will help Californians save approximately $1 billion annually while reducing 2 million tons of carbon emissions.
- Following a 2003 legislative mandate, the California Energy Commission revived the project around 2020 after federal efforts stalled, ensuring replacement tires sold in the state meet energy efficiency standards comparable to original equipment.
- Christian Robinson, senior director of state government affairs for the Specialty Equipment Market Association , warned the mandate could create 'undue burdens on working-class families,' though the commission calculated higher costs of $6 to $26 are offset by fuel savings.
- The rule establishes a 'leaf' rating system to help consumers identify efficient tires, with compliance phases beginning in 2029 and 2033; lifetime savings could reach $153, potentially rising 25% due to this year's gasoline price spikes.
- Regulatory experts anticipate the rule will ripple across other states, similar to California's tailpipe emission standards now enforced by 17 states and the District of Columbia. Robinson noted, 'What happens in California doesn't stay in California,' regarding potential expansion.
20 Articles
20 Articles
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The California Energy Commission’s newly adopted replacement-tire regulations have been reduced to a simplistic storyline: “Legislators passed a ‘bad bill’ tire-efficiency law.” That framing leaves Californians with an incomplete picture and misses some critical issues pertinent to non-elected commissions implementing the “will of the Legislature” decades after every member of that voting body has either died or left office, including the Govern…
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