White House Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy outlines U.S. plan to transition to EV at SAE International’s Government/Industry Meeting

Posted: January 25, 2022

Electric vehicles (EVs) are the future, and the U.S is looking for leaders to bring that future home, said White House Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy at SAE International’s Government/Industry Meeting last Wednesday.

“EVs are an essential tool that’s going to help us clean up our transportation sector, which is the largest source of climate pollution today, and it’s a major contributor to local air quality challenges,” McCarthy said at SAE’s annual meeting of government and industry leaders. “We have opportunities today and there’s no doubt that the future of transportation here in the United States and across the world is electric.”

The climate advisor shared the Biden administration’s goal to get U.S. vehicle sales to 50% electric by 2030, which the White House will contribute to by prioritizing EV purchases for government cars, with a plan to make every government passenger vehicle purchased an electric one by 2027. The government is also implementing Infrastructure plans to support EV across the country, and McCarthy emphasized the role this shift toward EV will play in job creation for the U.S.

McCarthy signaled that the government is looking for leaders in the industry to partner with the government on this shift, and cited SAE International as a key part of leading the charge toward EV.

“I’m always grateful to spend time with members who have been real leaders in the transportation sector, as SAE has been for a long time,” McCarthy said. “We know where the global marketplace is moving. The only question we have today is, ‘Is the U.S. going to lead?’”