Nebraska attorney general joins 13-state lawsuit to stop the Biden administration’s hidden electric-vehicle subsidy

Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers joined a 13-state coalition in a lawsuit to stop the Biden administration’s hidden subsidy for electric vehicles and to defend ethanol.  

“In his most recent assault on gas vehicles, President Biden is creating a rule that overstates the efficiency of electric cars by more than six times,” the Nebraska attorney general’s office stated. “This illegal bolstering of electric vehicles negatively affects car owners, car manufacturers, liquid-fuel producers and the electric grid.”

The rule in question, according to the attorney general’s office of Nebraska, is a manipulation of an incentive designed to increase fuel efficiency and support car manufacturers that produce vehicles running on gasoline, ethanol, biodiesel or compressed natural gas.

This incentive, originally used to benefit farmers and ethanol producers, is now being misused to favor electric vehicles, causing harm to the very industries it benefitted, the office stated. 

“Despite the Biden administration’s attempts to coerce automakers into producing more electric vehicles, fewer Americans are even interested in buying them,” Hilgers said.

“The DOE abused its authority to create a new rule that would force automakers to produce more electric vehicles or else face fines,” Hilgers added.

“This rule undermines the free market, and if it stands, Nebraskans will be left with higher costs and worse vehicles,” he said.

The states argue that the electric-vehicle handout violates the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeds DOE’s authority.

Nebraska joined the lawsuit along with Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and the American Free Enterprise Chamber of Commerce.