California's Unelected Energy Commission Should Not Restrict Tire and Vehicle Choices
Source: https://www.facebook.com/americanspectator/. "California’s New Tire Efficiency Rules Put Government in the Driver’s Seat | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics." August 31, 2026. spectator.org
The Gist
The author argues that California's unelected energy commission is overstepping its bounds by dictating what tires people can buy, even though the commissioners aren't real scientists and the commission doesn't even produce energy. He claims the free market already pushes tire makers to be efficient, so this government rule is unnecessary and just another example of unelected bureaucrats limiting people's choices and driving up costs.
Conclusion
Unelected California regulatory commissions like the California Energy Commission (CEC) should not impose restrictions on consumer choices in the tire and automobile markets, and such bodies should ideally be eliminated.
Premises
- The CEC's commissioners, despite being called experts, often lack genuine technical qualifications in energy or engineering (e.g., Nancy Skinner's degrees are in 'conservation and resource studies' and 'education,' not engineering or science).
- The CEC produces no energy itself, yet claims authority to dictate tire standards and restrict consumer choices.
- Tire manufacturers already have market incentives to maximize fuel efficiency without government mandates, since consumers demand better mileage, especially given California's high gas prices.
- Drivers are capable of selecting tires and vehicles that meet their own needs without government intervention.
- Similar unelected commissions (e.g., California Coastal Commission) have been shown to override elected officials, harm property rights, and restrict public access to resources, suggesting a pattern of government overreach.
- California's electrical grid is unreliable (e.g., 2022 blackout warnings telling EV owners not to charge during peak hours), undermining the state's simultaneous push for electric vehicle mandates by 2035.
Assumptions
- Market forces alone are sufficient to drive innovation and efficiency in tire and vehicle design without regulatory mandates.
- Being an elected official or having a traditional 'hard science' degree is necessary for legitimate authority over technical regulatory decisions.
- Government commissions inherently tend toward overreach and restriction rather than beneficial regulation.
- The primary motivation behind CEC's tire standards is ideological ('climate-change superstition') rather than genuine cost-saving or environmental benefit.
- Reducing consumer choice is inherently harmful, even if the choices offered still meet consumer needs (e.g., efficient tires).