California panel approves efficiency standards for tires

The California Energy Commission has approved first-in-the-nation efficiency standards for replacement tires on passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks.

That could limit which tires are sold in the state.

CEC says replacement tires are historically less energy-efficient than original factory tires. Harrison Reilly, the commission's chief communications officer, emphasized that factory-installed tires are engineered for mileage, but consumers typically lose efficiency when buying replacements.

"These cost-saving standards are designed to ensure that replacement tires are at least as energy efficient, on average, as tires sold on new vehicles," Reilly told The Center Square.

He said 70% of replacement tires currently don't meet the new standards, but noted that also means 30% already comply with Phase 2 standards, demonstrating the technical feasibility.

The CEC doesn't expect standards to be met immediately.

"Tire manufacturers have over six years to improve the remainder," Reilly said.

According to Reilly, the Replacement Tire Efficiency Program standards will save California drivers nearly $1 billion annually in gasoline and electricity costs while reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 2 million metric tons per year. He said that's the equivalent of removing 400,000 gas-powered cars from the road.

The program will also introduce a new rating system to help motorists evaluate tire performance and budget options.

Reilly noted that the CEC has a long history of regulating consumer goods, including lightbulbs, televisions and refrigerators. Despite initial opposition to those rules, he said the efficiency measures have saved Californians $200 billion since 1975.

"Across the board, these items, per unit, cost less than they did before the standards were established and save Californians money on their electricity bills," Reilly said.

Davis Adams-Smith, director of public relations at Bridgestone, told The Center Square that tire manufacturer supports the sustainability goals of the Replacement Tire Efficiency Program. "The company is working with the California Energy Commission to ensure that customers continue to have the safest, most efficient tire options for their vehicles."

Michelin Tires is also on record supporting the RTEP.

Kerry Jackson of the Pasadena, Calif.-based Pacific Research Institute saw this coming. He wrote a blog about the issue in June, calling it California's "regulatory blob."

"California wants to regulate every part of every life of every activity that it possibly can," Jackson told The Center Square.

"It's a regulatory blob, and this is just part of it," said Jackson, a William Clement Fellow in California Reform at PRI. "It's useless, it's meaningless, and it's going to end up costing more."

The CEC has downplayed cost concerns.

In its press release, the commission said the program will be phased in with a low incremental cost: $1.50 per tire during Phase 1 (2029–2032) and $6.50 per tire during Phase 2 (2033 and beyond).

"A typical driver of a gasoline car with more efficient tires will save $179 of gasoline over the life of a set of tires, or about seven times the incremental cost," the CEC claimed. "These savings were calculated with gasoline prices of $4.60 per gallon. At the elevated gasoline prices of mid-2026, the savings could be 25% higher than estimated."

For years, California consistently has had the nation's highest gas prices. On Wednesday, the average gas price in the Golden State was $5.58 a gallon, well above the national average of $4.09.

Jackson told The Center Square he does not trust the CEC's numbers on savings.

"I think most people in California would go, 'Yeah, we've seen this happen before, but we're not going to trust it either,'" Jackson said.

Jackson also warned that motorists in other states will inevitably be affected. Because manufacturers favor standardized production, he doubts companies will produce one tire for California and another for the rest of the country.

"It's going to become a de facto national standard," Jackson said. "So someone in Indiana is eventually going to have to pay the California price or the California premium, if you want to call it that."

The CEC's five members are appointed by the governor and must be confirmed by the state Senate. Taking that oversight into consideration, Larry Behrens of Power the Future said Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom should focus on other priorities.

"The only tires Newsom should be concerned with are the ones on the U-Hauls Californians are using to flee insane regulations," Behrens told The Center Square. "It's clear regulations like this are why California keeps losing people who can afford to leave."