Trump’s Energy Department Adds ‘Climate Change’ And ‘Emissions’ To Banned Words List

Under the Trump administration, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been reconsidering a number of regulations and emissions standards that were set under the Biden administration, moves that have received support from the Ford backed lobby group Alliance for Automotive Innovation (AAI) – as well as The Blue Oval itself. Those efforts include a proposal to end greenhouse gas emissions regulations entirely, which is currently open to public comments. Now, it seems as if Department of Energy may have added some associated words such as “climate change” and “emissions” to its list of “words to avoid.”

This news comes to us from Politico, which reports that it has obtained an email sent to workers at the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, notifying those employees that it has added words including “climate change,” “emissions,” “green,” “decarbonization,” “energy transition,” “sustainability/sustainable,” “clean or dirty energy,” “Carbon/CO2 Footprint,” and “Tax breaks/tax credits/subsidies” to its list of what should be avoided in internal and public communications.

“Please ensure that every member of your team is aware that this is the latest list of words to avoid – and continue to be conscientious about avoiding any terminology that you know to be misaligned with the Administration’s perspectives and priorities,” acting director of external affairs Rachel Overbey wrote in the email. It is worth noting that DOE spokesperson Ben Dietderich responded to this report by saying that the agency hasn’t prohibited the use of these words. “We’ll look into the validity of the email and if necessary take steps to correct any emails perceived as official direction,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ford recently submitted a federal filing to the Trump administration requesting “modest” greenhouse gas emissions standards that would take effect for the 2025 model year and “steadily become more stringent over time.” As Ford Authority reported in July, the EPA previously announced that it plans to rescind the 2009 Endangerment Finding, which officially declared greenhouse gasses as a danger to human life. The kicker here is that this rule enables the EPA to place limits on the pollutants emitted by vehicles, so if it goes away, such a move would remove tailpipe emissions standards for automakers.

If the EPA’s current proposal is finalized, it would remove all greenhouse gas standards for light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles and heavy-duty engines, starting with the first greenhouse gas rule set in 2010 for light-duty vehicles and in 2011 for medium-duty vehicles and heavy-duty vehicles and engines.