The Environmental Protection Agency is following through on a campaign promise from President Donald Trump to prioritize efforts to roll back regulations.
On Friday, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced, along with the newly created National Energy Dominance Council, that the EPA will be sending two truck-related waivers for California regs that were approved by the Biden Administration to Congress for review: California’s Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) and Omnibus NOx rules, in addition to its Advanced Clean Cars II rule. The two waivers for truck-related rules, Zeldin said, not only increase the cost of those vehicles but also increase the costs of goods and the cost of living for American families across the country.
Zeldin added that the Biden administration "failed to send rules" on the Clean Air Act waivers to Congress, “preventing members of Congress from deciding on extremely consequential actions that have massive impacts and costs across the entire United States. The Trump EPA is transparently correcting this wrong and rightly following the rule of law.”
According to a Congressional Review Service report dated Aug. 30, 2024, California's Clean Air Act waivers are not covered by the Congressional Review Act (CRA) requirements for agency final rulemakings, because they are defined as orders rather than rules. The Government Accountability Office reaffirmed this definition in November 2023 when it issued an opinion determining that EPA’s reinstatement of a waiver for California regulations setting emissions standards for greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks was an “adjudicatory order” not subject to the CRA.
It is, however, customary for Congress to conduct oversight of executive branch actions, and there are a variety of steps legislators could take -- new legislation, hearings, reports and the like.
[Related: CARB backs away from ACF emissions rule, withdrawing waiver request]
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer said that "[s]etting national policy is the responsibility of Congress, not California. It’s no wonder small-business truckers have left the state in droves to find better opportunities elsewhere."
Spencer highlighted the reality for many owner-operators that "vehicle reliability and affordability are critical. So far, there is no convincing evidence that electric commercial motor vehicles are a viable option for small-business truckers given the high costs and inadequate charging infrastructure."
He added that the "overreaching Omnibus NOx rules have raised prices on new vehicles and increased maintenance costs for trucks already on the road."
[Related: EPA 2027 emissions regulations: How high will Class 8 truck prices go?]
American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear also praised EPA's decision to send the waivers to Congress for review.
“This is not the United States of California,” Spear said. “California should never be given the keys to set national policy and regulate America’s supply chain. Thanks to the leadership of the Trump Administration, Congress now has one more avenue available to reclaim the keys from Sacramento and restore common sense to our nation’s environmental policies.“
EPA in December granted the California Air Resources Board’s request for a waiver for its Omnibus NOx rule, which CARB adopted in 2020. It also granted the waiver for the Advanced Clean Cars II rule at the same time.
The Omnibus Low-NOx reg slashed NOx and particulate matter (PM) emissions standards and included new requirements for test procedures, regulatory useful life, and emissions warranties.
[Related: New York could back off CARB's Advanced Clean Trucks rule]
The Advanced Clean Trucks rule received its EPA waiver back in March 2023. ACT requires truck manufacturers to increase zero-emission new truck sales to 55% (Class 2b-3), 75% (Class 4-8), and 40% of semi-tractor sales by 2035.
Seeing the writing on the wall following Trump’s election, CARB withdrew its request for a waiver for its Advanced Clean Fleets rule earlier this year. ACF would have required trucking companies of size and drayage operations in the state to transition to zero-emission vehicles beginning last year, with entire fleets to be fully ZEV between 2035 and 2042, depending on a variety of factors. ACF would also have required all new heavy trucks sold in California be ZEVs by 2036.
[Related: Trucking groups decry EPA decision to grant low-NOx reg waiver for CARB]
