Starting this year, California consumers will pay a 1.5% fee on all products with an embedded battery under a law that aims to curb the risk of battery fires and increase the recycling of lithium batteries. The surcharge, capped at $15, expands a recycling program that has been collecting computer monitors and TVs for two decades. Consumers will pay the fee when buying any product with an embedded battery, whether it's rechargeable or not. Under harsh conditions at recycling and waste facilities, lithium-ion batteries can catch fire and even explode. Supporters of the law say a small fee to fund proper collection is cheaper than fires that can cause millions of dollars in damages.

Tesla lost its crown as the world's bestselling electric vehicle maker on Friday as a customer revolt over Elon Musk's right-wing politics, expiring U.S. tax breaks to buyers and stiff overseas competition pushed sales down for a second year in a row. Tesla said that it delivered 1.64 million vehicles in 2025, down 9% from a year ago. Chinese rival BYD, which sold 2.26 million vehicles last year, is now the biggest EV maker. For the fourth quarter, sales totaled 418,227, falling short of the 440,000 that analysts polled by FactSet expected. The sales total were hit hard by the expiration of a $7,500 tax credit that was phased out by the Trump administration at the end of September.

President Donald Trump has announced a proposal to weaken vehicle mileage rules for the auto industry. If the plan announced Wednesday is finalized next year, it would ease pressure on automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and trucks. The proposal would significantly reduce fuel economy requirements through the 2031 model year. Those requirements set rules on how far new vehicles need to travel on a gallon of gasoline. It's the Trump administration's latest move to reverse Biden-era policies that encouraged cleaner-running cars and trucks, including electric vehicles. Environmentalists said the rule change would increase pollution and raise prices for consumers by allowing less fuel-efficient cars.

The U.S. government is taking a minority stake in Lithium Americas, a company that is developing one of the world's largest lithium mines in northern Nevada. The Department of Energy will take a 5% equity stake in the miner, which is based in Vancouver. It will also take a 5% stake in the Thacker Pass lithium mining project, a joint venture with General Motors. Thacker Pass is considered crucial in reducing U.S. reliance on China for lithium, a critical material used to produce the high tech batteries used in cell phones, electric vehicles and renewable energy. Both Republicans and Democrats support the project and narrowing the production gap. China is the world's largest lithium processor.

Featured

With one of the highest shares of electric vehicles in the country, local fire departments in San Mateo County are ramping up training on how …

Rivian Automotive is starting to build a long-delayed electric vehicle plant in Georgia, despite tough challenges in the U.S. market. The company is investing $5 billion as it aims to persuade Americans to buy electric trucks. But Tuesday's groundbreaking comes just weeks before the federal government kills a $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit that President Donald Trump wanted to get rid of. Rivian officials say they're banking on making vehicles that buyers will find superior to traditional gas-fueled cars. A new Rivian SUV will start selling next year for $45,000. The Georgia plant is crucial to the company reaching a mass market and achieving profitability after years of losses.

U.S. immigration officials say some 475 people were detained during an immigration raid at a sprawling Georgia site where South Korean auto company Hyundai manufactures electric vehicles. South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lee Jaewoong described the number of detained South Koreans as "large" though he did not provide an exact figure. No charges were immediately announced. Officials from Homeland Security Investigations say the raid resulted from a monthslong investigation into allegations of illegal hiring at the site and was the largest single-site enforcement operation in the agency's two-decade history.