EVs Should Be a Choice, Not a Government Mandate

America’s franchised dealers fully support customers’ interests in electric vehicles (EVs). Dealers offer a wide variety of vehicles to fit the needs and budgets of all Americans, including the latest EV models. Dealers have invested over $7.7 billion in EV inventory, facilities, equipment and training — and in 2025, franchised dealers sold more new EVs than all direct-sales manufacturers combined.

From 2010 until 2025, a federal incentive was in place that reduced the cost of eligible EVs by as much as $7,500. At their height during this time, EVs plateaued at about 8 percent of new-vehicle sales nationally on an annual basis. And, since that incentive expired in September of 2025, EV sales have dropped significantly.

Despite very weak consumer demand, federal and state regulations were structured to require rapidly increasing levels of EV adoption. In fact, federal emissions standards effectively required EVs to make up more than half of new-vehicle sales by 2032, while California rules adopted by a number of other states required a transition to 100 percent ZEV (EVs plus some plug-in hybrids) sales by 2035.

Dealers cannot control which vehicle technologies customers choose, nor can government mandates manufacture consumer demand. Recognizing this fundamental disconnect between regulatory requirements and the marketplace, NADA successfully advocated for policies that better reflect actual consumer demand and allow Americans—not government mandates—to determine which vehicles best meet their needs.