Affordable Clean Cars Coalition

States have been innovating and adopting their own clean vehicle programs for more than half a century, which have a demonstrated record of supporting and creating good-paying jobs, promoting energy independence, and expanding consumer choice to more vehicle models, while reducing vehicle pollution and helping tackle the climate crisis. Thanks to these state programs and other complementary efforts, clean car sales in the U.S. more than quadrupled between 2020 and 2024 — while the global market for clean cars has also surged to record levels.  

Today, manufacturers in the U.S. offer more than 100 clean vehicle models for consumers to choose from, with more forthcoming, creating a dynamic market for cutting-edge vehicles that can improve our air quality, public health, and bottom lines. Public charging infrastructure is also more widely available than ever before, allowing Americans to confidently recharge and refuel on longer trips and at destinations closer to home. Importantly, clean cars are saving people money at the pump — with an estimated $1,200 in annual savings on fuel costs alone and an average of $10,000 in savings over a car’s lifespan.  

In May 2025, the U.S. Climate Alliance announced the launch of the Affordable Clean Cars Coalition by 11 member states – California, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington – to help lower barriers for consumers to more affordably own, drive, charge, and maintain clean cars. Together, these states will collaborate to: 

• Develop solutions that make cleaner vehicles more affordable and accessible to all Americans who want them, including by reducing cost barriers, increasing availability of options, and expanding accessible charging and fueling infrastructure at home and in our communities. 

• Continue making progress toward the goals of states’ clean vehicle programs. 

• Defend longstanding authority under the Clean Air Act for states to adopt transportation solutions that best meet their needs and most effectively support their families and communities. 

• Explore opportunities to develop and adopt next-generation standards and programs to further reduce vehicle pollution, as permitted under the Clean Air Act or otherwise, such as solutions that increase consumer access to cleaner cars and low-carbon fuels. 

• Collaborate with one another, share evidence-based practices, engage experts, and develop solutions that can be shared across state lines and eventually scaled by the federal government. 

• Foster meaningful engagement with manufacturers, suppliers, dealers, labor unions, business associations, utilities, community-based organizations, charging and fueling infrastructure providers, and others in developing and successfully implementing state transportation solutions. 

• Prioritize efforts that bolster America’s ability to compete and innovate in a growing global market. 

The Affordable Clean Cars Coalition builds on past multistate efforts, including the Nation’s Clean Car Promise, the Multi-state Zero-Emission Vehicle Memorandum of Understanding, and the Multi-state Medium- and Heavy-duty Vehicle Zero-Emission Vehicle Memorandum of Understanding. States will customize efforts to address their own individual challenges and opportunities while working together to achieve the coalition’s collective goals.