Biden pledge to make federal fleet electric faces slow start
President Joe Biden, a self-described “car guy,” often promises to lead by example by moving swiftly to convert the sprawling U.S. Government fleet to zero-emission electric vehicles. But efforts have lagged in helping meet his ambitious climate goals by eliminating gas-powered vehicles from the federal fleet.
Biden last year directed the U.S. Government to purchase only American-made, zero-emission passenger cars by 2027 and electric versions of other vehicles by 2035.
“We’re going to harness the purchasing power of the federal government to buy clean, zero-emission vehicles,” the president said soon after his January 2021 inauguration. He has since used photo ops — taking a spin in Ford Motor Co.’s electric F-150 pickup truck, or driving GM’s Cadillac Lyriq electric SUV at the Detroit auto show — to promote their potential.
