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FIRST ON FOX: A group of 25 Republican attorneys general have notified the Biden administration they will challenge the latest fuel emissions restrictions, calling a new federal rule "the latest attempt to drive gas-powered cars off the road." 

Attorneys General Russell Coleman of Kentucky and Patrick Morrisey of West Virginia on Wednesday filed a notice in the 6th circuit that they will file suit against the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's rule, entitled, "Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Cars and Light Trucks for Model Years 2027 and Beyond and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Heavy-Duty Pickup Trucks and Vans for Model Years 2030 and Beyond." 

That rule, which was enacted on Monday, requires car manufacturers to dramatically increase the average fuel economy of passenger cars and light trucks in less than a decade. 

The new regulation imposes "unworkable standards that leverage the weight of the federal government to require auto manufacturers to produce more EVs," the AGs say.

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EV charging

A driver charges his electric vehicle at a charging station on August 31, 2022. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

"The forced transition to EVs would bypass the free market while increasing costs on families and undermining the reliability of the electric grid," they said. 

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An engine compartment is visible for an electric school bus operating on Feb. 2, 2023, in Tok, Alaska.

An engine compartment is visible for an electric school bus operating on Feb. 2, 2023, in Tok, Alaska.

"Once again, President Biden’s election-year politics value their nonsensical green agenda over helping Kentuckians put food on the table," Coleman told Fox News Digital

"It’s time for the Biden Administration to hit the brakes on its unaffordable EV mandates, let the free market work and get back to protecting our families." 

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President Joe Biden

President Biden speaks at a campaign event at Pullman Yards on March 9, 2024 in Atlanta. (Megan Varner/Getty Images)

According to Coleman, EVs account for less than 1% of vehicles registered in Kentucky. 

"Congress did not give the NHTSA such power to reshape an industry that would ultimately affect the pocketbooks of consumers — this rule is legally flawed and unrealistic," Attorney General Morrisey said. "This will undoubtedly cause the United States to be dependent on other nations like China for our energy needs and will undermine American energy security by increasing demand and strain power grids."

Fox News Digital reached out to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for comment. 

Brianna Herlihy is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.

Authored by Brianna Herlihy via FoxNews June 26th 2024