STATE UPDATE


Alaska—Internal Combustion Engine: Alaska has introduced SEMA-supported legislation to protect consumers’ choice of vehicle powerplants and fuel by preventing a state agency, county or city from limiting access to certain power sources. Under current law, new gas- and diesel-powered vehicle sales may be threatened if narrow energy policies are adopted.

California Senator Anthony Portantino introduced SEMA-sponsored legislation to create a financial rebate program for converting gas- and diesel-powered motor vehicles into zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs).
Lawmakers in Virginia introduced SEMA-supported legislation to repeal the law tying the state to California’s motor vehicle emissions standards. Under current law, sales of new gas- and diesel-powered vehicles will be banned starting in 2035. Virginia is seen as the most likely state to repeal its mandate and Governor Glenn Youngkin has made it one of his top priorities. However, control of the legislature is narrowly split between Republicans and Democrats, making the final outcome hard to predict.
As a public servant, California Senator Josh Newman’s mantra has been to put his constituents over politics. Since his first election to the California Senate in 2016, Senator Newman has routinely gone above and beyond to promote the specialty automotive aftermarket industry in his home state. Why? His Southern California district, which is home to SEMA’s Diamond Bar headquarters, boasts 83 SEMA-member companies. Put into perspective, that number is more SEMA members than most states in the union have in total. When it came time to select the 2022 winner of the Stephen B. McDonald Lawmaker of the Year award, Senator Newman had homefield advantage.
At the time of publication, the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee and the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee are negotiating on the Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act (RPM Act) for potential consideration at the end of the 2021–2022 session of Congress.
More than 100 SEMA members descended on the nation’s capital to participate in SEMA’s 2022 Washington Rally in September. Industry leaders took to the halls of Congress to remind lawmakers of the cultural and economic importance of the automotive specialty-equipment industry and motorsports.
The laws and regulations that govern SEMA members affect the way automotive specialty-equipment products are made, distributed, and marketed. The responsibility of the SEMA government affairs office is to stay on top of all relevant state and federal legislation and regulations and advocate for industry positions to ensure the best possible outcome for SEMA’s membership. The following are a few examples of critical legislative/regulatory issues addressed by the SEMA government affairs team over the past year.
In a 6-3 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that Congress did not grant the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to devise carbon emissions caps for power plants that would shift the way they generate energy away from coal.
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