Trump cancels federal climate regulations. Here’s what it means for Michigan

The Trump administration will no longer police climate pollution, after revoking a scientific finding that greenhouse gases harm health and welfare
The decision brings uncertainty for Michigan’s auto and electricity sectors
Michigan’s climate law still requires a transition to clean energy

The Trump administration announced Thursday it will no longer police climate pollution, the latest in a series of regulatory rollbacks with significant implications for Michigan’s economy, environment and public health.

Nearly a year after first announcing plans to do so, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Thursday repealed the so-called “endangerment finding,” a 2009 federal declaration that greenhouse gases harm public health and welfare.

The move goes against the overwhelming scientific consensus that human-caused greenhouse gas emissions are dangerously warming Earth’s climate.

While Trump administration officials said it would save industry more than $1.3 trillion, that figure ignores the costs borne by consumers, such as health impacts from pollution and rising fuel costs from driving less efficient vehicles.

A 2025 University of Maryland study found Michigan is one of hardest hit states from the environmental rollbacks, costing the state’s gross domestic product about $5.5 billion by 2035.

The endangerment finding served as the legal foundation for regulations designed to limit greenhouse gas pollution from power plants, automobiles and big industries. By repealing it, the EPA has revoked its own regulatory authority.

Alongside its repeal, the Trump administration canceled federal emission limits for motor vehicles, which are among the nation’s largest sources of climate pollution.

The administration is also preparing to rescind limits on fossil fuel power plants.

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Zeldin hailed Thursday’s announcement as “the single largest deregulatory act in the history of the USA,” saying eliminating climate regulations would cut energy costs and reduce automobile costs by $2,400 apiece.

“The Trump EPA is strictly following the letter of the law, returning commonsense to policy, delivering consumer choice to Americans and advancing the American Dream,” he said.

It wasn’t immediately clear how the administration arrived at its cost-saving estimates. An analysis by Consumer Reports found that fuel efficiency standards have saved drivers thousands of dollars on gas without raising the sticker price of vehicles.

Experts have also estimated the long-term cost of climate inaction is higher than any short-term savings associated with boosting fossil fuel use. The global toll of extreme weather events alone is expected to reach into the trillions by midcentury, while air pollution from automobiles and power plants kills hundreds of Michiganders each year.

Democrats and environmental groups condemned the rollback, saying the EPA has abandoned its mission to protect the public from pollution.

The repeal “gives polluters a free pass to dump more smog and soot into the air — fueling asthma attacks, heart disease and hospital visits, especially for children and seniors,” said Bentley Johnson, federal government affairs director for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. He said it will “result in dirtier air, poorer health and strain on Michiganders’ pocketbooks.”

Still unclear is whether the change will stand. Critics have promised lawsuits and legal analysts expect the dispute to reach the US Supreme Court.

Impact on automakers, utilities

The vehicle emissions standards were a frequent campaign-trail target for Trump, who has long denied the reality of climate change and referred to efforts to rein in fossil fuels or promote renewable energy as “the green new scam.”

Michigan has none of its own regulations limiting greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles or power plants. That means the federal repeal “significantly affects our ability to address greenhouse gas emissions,” said Dale George, spokesperson for the state Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.

Impacts to Michigan’s automobile industry and electrical sector may be mixed.

Automakers have already scaled back their efforts to transition to EVs in response to reduced federal support and shifting market demand. Cumulative investments in electric vehicle and battery projects in the state seesawed from billions a year during the Biden administration to $3 billion worth of disinvestment last year.

While there is “no question” looser emissions standards take pressure off automakers, regulatory whiplash is not helpful to the industry, said Glenn Stevens, executive director of statewide industry advocacy group MichAuto.

Automakers need long lead times to make business decisions that often require years of product development and retooling assembly lines.

“You do that with the most amount of certainty you can,” Stevens said. “…What happens when the administration changes again?”

Stevens predicted US automakers’ transition to EVs would continue, albeit at a slower pace, as they look to compete in overseas markets where EVs are gaining share.

“The rest of the world is adopting them,” he said.

John Bozella, president and CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an industry group that includes Michigan’s Big Three, criticized former President Joe Biden for raising emissions standards to “unachievable” levels, but offered neither praise nor criticism of Trump’s decision to completely do away with standards.

“The auto industry in America remains focused on preserving vehicle choice for consumers, keeping the industry competitive, and staying on a long-term path of emissions reductions and cleaner vehicles,” Bozella said.

While the Trump administration also aims to stop regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, Michigan’s electric utilities are bound to a 2023 state law that requires them to achieve 100% clean energy by 2040.

In statements to Bridge Michigan, spokespeople for Consumers Energy and DTE Energy said the utilities will comply with that law. They did not address questions about whether looser federal standards could have any near-term impact on power plant emissions.

Saying DTE is focused on delivering “safe, reliable and affordable energy,” DTE spokesperson Amanda Passage said the utility “will continue to follow state and federal energy laws in a way that ensures we deliver on this commitment to our customers.”

It’s not yet clear how the Trump administration’s broader efforts to bolster fossil fuels and stymie renewable energy could impact Michigan’s climate plan.

The administration has ordered Consumers Energy to keep operating the Cambell coal plant in West Olive for months beyond its planned closure date in May, repeatedly issuing three-month extensions. Consumers had planned the closure to save money by switching to cheaper natural gas.

“Our long-term plan remains the same, to decommission the plant,” Wheeler said.

DTE’s Passage also said the company remains committed to its plan to close the Monroe coal-fired power plant in 2032.

Trump has long downplayed the threat of climate change, even while humanity’s continued burning of fossil fuels inflicts damage ranging from rising seas and extreme weather to megafires and dying coral reefs.

In addition to rolling back regulations, his administration has redirected federal spending to deprioritize green energy and EVs while boosting spending on fossil fuels. That includes rescinding federal tax incentives for EV buyers and canceling Biden-era conservation initiatives.

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