The U.S. government will stop buying gas-powered vehicles for its various fleets by 2035 opting instead for electric vehicles (EVs), under a new executive order signed by President Joe Biden on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
Under the order, the government will also begin purchasing only zero-emission light-duty vehicles as soon as 2027.
According to the order, the U.S. is “the single largest landowner, energy consumer and employer in the nation,” adding that the government can change “how we build, buy and manage electricity, vehicles, buildings and other operations to be clean and sustainable.”
Canada ‘Concerned’ About Biden’s Buy-American EV Tax Credit https://t.co/XM69dz4xNW
— TeslaNorth.com (@RealTeslaNorth) November 18, 2021
At the present time, the U.S. government owns over 650,000 vehicles across the country, and it purchases around 50,000 vehicles each year. The plan is also expected to garner a 65 percent drop in emissions by 2030.
In addition, the order holds that the U.S. government will source electricity through carbon-free and non-polluting sources on a net yearly basis by 2030, with total net-zero emissions by 2050.
Biden first alluded to the changeover to EVs not long after taking office in January, saying that the U.S. government “owned an enormous fleet of vehicles” which they planned to replace with “EVs made right here in America, by American workers.”
In August, Biden also signed an executive order to make 50 percent of new car sales electric by 2030.
