More than 4,700 dealerships across the U.S sent a letter on Thursday, Jan. 25, to the Biden Admin asking to “hit the brakes” on the EPA’s upcoming rule changes to enforce stricter vehicle-pollution standards. The letter, the second sent by the group, comes weeks before the EPA is expected to rule on its tailpipe-emissions proposal.

The EPA proposed regulations could mean that two out of three vehicles sold in the U.S. are electric by 2032. That’s higher than the administration’s target of 50% set two years ago. The new regulations which begin with the 2027 model year, could mean a 56% drop in projected greenhouse gas emissions and reduce pollutants harmful to health by 60% from the existing standard by model year 2032.

Dealerships cited several factors in the letter that indicate slowing EV adoption. The signers said the supply of EVs on dealer lots is twice that of ICE vehicles, and that they won’t be able to sell EVs at the rate the regulations would require. “It is incontestable that the combination of fewer tax incentives, a woefully inadequate charging infrastructure, and insufficient consumer demand makes the proposed electric vehicle mandate completely unrealistic,” the letter says.

The U.S. reached a milestone in Nov. with more than 1 million new EVs  being sold in 2023 ( 7.5% of total U.S sales) , according to Motorintelligence.com. Even with automakers like Ford, who had a 43% increase in EV sales in 2023 and Hyundai hitting 100% growth with the Ioniq 5 and the Kia EV6, new EV sales still fell short of the 90% growth the industry saw in 2022. Auto experts say the adoption percentage must rise quickly to keep up with the new regulations.