US EPA repeals GHG Endangerment Finding
12 February 2026
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has repealed the 2009 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Endangerment Finding and all subsequent federal GHG emission standards for all vehicles and engines of model years 2012 to 2027 and beyond.
The action—which finalizes the proposed rule released in July 2025—was announced by the EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin at a ceremony in the White House, in the presence of US President Trump.
The adopted rule also eliminates all off-cycle GHG emission credits, including credits for the start-stop feature. The action is only related to GHG emissions and does not affect regulations that control emissions of criteria pollutants and air toxics.
“The 2009 Endangerment Finding was used to justify trillions of dollars in regulations, including the Obama and Biden Administrations’ illegal push towards Electric Vehicle (EV) mandates and compliance requirements, while simultaneously driving up the cost of vehicles for American families and small businesses,” the EPA said in a press release. “The final rule will save Americans over $1.3 trillion by removing the regulatory requirements to measure, report, certify, and comply with federal GHG emission standards for motor vehicles, and repeals associated compliance programs, credit provisions, and reporting obligations that exist solely to support the vehicle GHG regulatory regime.”
In the repeal process, the EPA cited updated scientific studies and court decisions that, according to the agency, challenge the legal foundation of the 2009 Endangerment Finding. Cited data includes information in the 2025 Climate Work Group study released by the Department of Energy.
The GHG Endangerment Finding is a landmark 2009 determination that greenhouse gases—carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6)—in the atmosphere are a threat to the public health and welfare.
The Endangerment Finding followed a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that carbon dioxide is a pollutant and that the EPA has the authority to regulate CO2 emissions. The Finding provided the legal basis for EPA GHG emission regulations for engines and vehicles.
Environmental groups, including Earthjustice and others, indicated they would challenge the repeal of the Endangerment Finding in court, which could lead to a years-long legal battle over the legality of GHG emission regulations for engines and vehicles.
Source: US EPA