Oregon Bans Internal Combustion New Car Sales By 2035

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has approved regulations known as Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC), which effectively prohibit the sale of new vehicles powered by combustion engines, including gasoline and diesel vehicles. Under these rules, all new vehicle sales in Oregon must be exclusively electric by 2035, with some exceptions.

According to the recently passed ACC II legislation, the sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles will be permitted, although there is no clear indication of criteria for electric-only range. The legislation specifically mentions light-duty trucks, but does not address heavy-duty models such as the Ford Super Duty, Silverado HD, or Ram HD pickups. The ruling does not impact existing combustion-powered vehicles and does not prohibit the sale of used cars with gasoline or diesel engines. Additionally, ACC II prevents in-state sales, but does not affect out-of-state purchases or vehicle registrations.
Manufacturers will have various requirements to meet in the coming years as the legislation goes into effect immediately. The first phase requires zero-emission vehicle sales to make up 35 percent of total sales by 2026, and also requires manufacturers to make EVs more accessible to lower-income households and communities of color.

The Environmental Quality Commission approved ACC II in a 3-1 vote on December 19. Of the 700 comments received by the Commission, 500 were in support of the decision.

“With today’s adoption of the ACC II Rule, all those living in Oregon will benefit from the cleaner air and improved public health outcomes achieved by reducing pollution from transportation,” said DEQ Interim Director Leah Feldon. “This is especially true for low-income and underrepresented communities across the state who live closest to roadways and have been most often impacted by poor air quality.”