North Cook News

Jon Luers, the Republican nominee for the state’s 10th Senate District seat, has highlighted a potential issue for electric vehicles in Illinois. He noted on Facebook this week that the state's corn growers are not in favor of new emissions standards.

"Gov. Pritzker's EV push faces problems, including being at odds with Illinois corn growers," said Luers, Candidate, according to Facebook.

"Gov. Pritzker’s EV push faces problems, including being at odds with Illinois corn growers," Luers wrote in his post.

Screenshot of Jon Luers for IL 10th Senate District Facebook post | Jon Luers for IL Senate Facebook page

Luers also shared a link to an article from JusttheNews.com which discussed the growing opposition to strict emissions standards from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The article quotes Garrett Hawkins, vice president of the Illinois Corn Growers’ Association.

"With this policy, we could have a 50% decrease in the price of corn, and with that, you would have rural America and farmers not doing well. It’s going to be a direct hit to the Midwest," Hawkins said in the article.

The new rules from the EPA are less stringent than those proposed last year. Announced on March 20, 2024, the final rule: Multi-Pollutant Emission for Model years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles includes final standards for federal greenhouse gas emissions for light-duty trucks and passenger vehicles from 2023-2026.

These rules date back to April 27, 2023 when proposals were made for new standards to further reduce emissions from light- and medium-duty vehicles starting in model year 2027. According to EPA's rule summary dedicated to these standards, three days of public hearings were held allowing interested individuals to hear oral presentations of data or argue against the proposed code. The comment period ended in July 2023.

A representative of Consumer Energy Alliance also commented as part of Just The News article.

"It is disappointing that the Biden Administration continues to be actively working against its stated goal of ‘equipping the American middle class to succeed'. While electric vehicles clearly have a role in our vehicle mix, the middle class cannot succeed with the EPA forcing an unworkable, expensive EV quota on working class families," said David Holt, president of Consumer Energy Alliance.