California has long been a leader when it comes to emissions standards and vehicle features, but the state is accelerating even further by enacting a ban on new, gas-powered vehicles starting in 2035. It's a significant step to lower emissions and fight climate change, but questions remain about charging infrastructure, semiconductor availability, and much more. 
Karl Brauer, an Executive Analyst at iSeeCars.com, joins Closing Bell to discuss the challenges ahead for wider EV adoption as California residents look ahead to this change.

Closing Bell

California Accelerates Toward All-Electric Future with Ban on New Gas-Powered Cars Starting 2035

well, California rapidly accelerating toward an all electric future in the state this week announcing it will ban the sale of new gas powered vehicles starting in 2035 as a way to drastically curb emissions and fight climate change. There are slight exceptions for residents who want to continue to drive a gas powered vehicle. But broadly, the landmark move is expected to completely change what California roads will look like it is a step forward when it comes to reducing emissions, but there are still questions about adoption and how easy or difficult it might be. So joining me now is Karl brauer, executive analyst at iC cars dot com carl. It's good to see you. So let's just start with the basics here. What do consumers need to know about the details of this ban? Well, it starts in 2026 and it means that you have to have to sell 35% of vehicles in this state have to be either pure electric or plug in hybrids and um, I think there's hydrogen in there too. But hydrogen vehicles are not really realistic at this point. So that basically means you're gonna as a manufacturer have to distribute all of your technology that's going towards CVS and plug in hybrids to the state of California and up to a dozen or more states that might follow suit as they have in the past for their requirements. So it just as you noted, puts a big emphasis on E. V. S and plug in hybrids and I think plug in hybrids are going to be the ones because they're easier to get to at this point in time in terms of technology and cost and resources. I think this is really a boon for those as much or more than TVs. Sure. So just to be clear though, carl, if you own a traditional gas powered vehicle that you purchase before 2035 when this goes into effect, you will still be able to drive that on the roads of California, correct? Yeah. They haven't gone to where they're starting to exile cars that don't, you know, that admit emissions and stuff. Hopefully we don't get there. But right now it's just what, which new vehicles percentage wise can be sold in the state, Does the infrastructure exist in California? The E. V charging infrastructure to make this a reality? And if not now for most of the vehicles to be electric carl, what steps need to be taken to get there? Yeah, the infrastructure really can't handle it on, on multiple levels. There's there's just the number of plugs that you're gonna need to satisfy all the vehicles and there's the, the robustness of the electric grid which we already see get challenged on a regular basis when there's extended heat waves and people turn on their air conditioning. So if we had a big influx or if we're regulating a big influx of E. V. S or even plug in hybrids that still want to be plugged in. Sometimes we're going to put the current grid under stress and so it certainly asks or begs the question, you know, can California make this kind of requirement for the new vehicle sales and still supply the energy needed to power the vehicles they're requiring to be sold here. What does it mean for California? Gas stations? Obviously this is going to impact their business as well and for consumers who want to continue to drive a gas powered vehicle that they purchased before 2035 of course they have to have somewhere to fill that up. Yeah, I don't see the gas station network really reducing. We still have so many existing cars and that's kind of the thing to keep in mind. As you noted, this is not removing internal combustion vehicles from the roads and so the bulk of them on the roads are still internal combustion and all the new plug in hybrids that this is going to inspire will still want to have gasoline too. So I don't see any near term big impact on gas stations. They'll still have plenty of customers in California. My other question carl we just have time for one more is this semiconductor chip shortage has been awful for the vehicle space any car right? Especially electric vehicles to so granted 2035 is 12 years out 13 years at this point, but closer to 12 years since we're in the back half of the year? Is there the expectation that the supply chain will be fixed at that point? With more chip companies setting up shop in America to actually make this a reality? Certainly that's the hope. I don't know how anyone can really predict how anything is gonna work in the world 10 plus years from now. But certainly the idea is that we will maybe get the chip production not so localized in the Asia pacific area where we're at the mercy of what's going on over there. I think we've not recognized the importance of microchips hopefully, and we're gonna learn from our Painful lesson in the last couple of years. But I mean, Kristen that's the real question. We have to have the ability to produce these cars and we have to make sure they're priced reasonably too. Don't forget to, we we just did a study and I see cars about how electric cars have gone up five times in price versus gasoline cars over the past year, gas cars are up 10%. Electric cars are up 54% in the last 12 months. So we got to make these cars not just produce a ble but accessible by real consumers. They got to cost the right amount, right, higher sticker price, higher insurance price to when you buy a higher sticker price vehicles. So really good points there, Karl brauer executive analyst at cars dot com Thank you