Trucking news and briefs for Friday, Feb. 13, 2026:
- Legal challenges threatened after EPA announces GHG emissions regs rollback.
- Estes expands Northwest with acquisition.
- New Colorado Love’s opens, but without truck parking.
EPA officially announces repeal of GHG Endangerment Finding, California vows to sue
President Donald Trump and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Thursday officially announced the rollback of the 2009 Endangerment Finding that allowed the EPA to regulate six greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride).
Repealing the Endangerment Finding has been on the Trump Administration’s radar since last summer.
The EPA is eliminating both the Obama-era 2009 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Endangerment Finding and all subsequent federal GHG emission standards for all vehicles and engines of model years 2012 to 2027 and beyond. The action also eliminates all off-cycle credits. The text of the final rule has not yet been published in the Federal Register, so specifics on the elimination of GHG emission standards are unclear as of Friday morning.
“The Endangerment Finding has been the source of 16 years of consumer choice restrictions and trillions of dollars in hidden costs for Americans,” Zeldin said. “Referred to by some as the ‘Holy Grail’ of the ‘climate change religion,’ the Endangerment Finding is now eliminated. The Trump EPA is strictly following the letter of the law, returning common sense to policy, delivering consumer choice to Americans, and advancing the American Dream.”
[Related: CARB rips EPA's 'sloppy and amateurish' effort to repeal GHG regs]
In announcing the finalization of the rule Thursday, EPA said it considered and reevaluated the legal foundation of the Endangerment Finding and the text of the Clean Air Act (CAA) in light of recent Supreme Court decisions, which EPA said “have significantly clarified the scope of EPA’s authority under the CAA and made clear that the interpretive moves the Endangerment Finding used to launch an unprecedented course of regulation were unlawful.”
The agency concluded that Section 202(a) of the CAA does not provide statutory authority for EPA to prescribe motor vehicle and engine emission standards in the manner previously utilized, including for the purpose of addressing global climate change, and therefore has no legal basis for the Endangerment Finding and resulting regulations.
Shortly after the announcement Thursday at the White House, California Gov. Gavin Newsom put out a statement saying California will be taking EPA to court over the decision.
"Donald Trump may put corporate greed ahead of communities and families, but California will not stand by -- we will sue to challenge this illegal action, and we will continue fighting climate pollution here in our state,” he said in part. “We will continue to lead because the lives and livelihoods of our people depend on it.”
This move follows other recent significant emissions-related moves around the Trump administration, from the Department of Justice backing off criminal prosecution of emissions-'delete' shops and owners to EPA signaling a potential end to engine derates in the event of emission-control malfunctions.
[Related: EPA set to roll back key cog in greenhouse gas emissions regs machine]
Washington-based Key Trucking acquired by Estes
Estes Logistics, a division of Estes Express Lines, has acquired Kent, Washington-based Key Trucking Inc.
The acquisition allows Richmond, Virginia-based Estes to expand into the Pacific Northwest, while preserving the legacy Key Trucking has built. All current Key Trucking employees will transition seamlessly to Estes, a company that shares the same family-owned values and commitment to its people and customers, the companies said.
"When we first learned that the Castagno family was considering retirement, we were immediately excited about the opportunity to integrate Key Trucking's dedicated transportation network into our growing footprint," said Bobby Speight, Corporate Vice President at Estes Logistics. "Beyond expanding our presence into the Pacific Northwest and the greater Seattle metro, this move strengthens our ability to support customers across our entire network."
[Related: Louisiana tanker fleet acquired by Kenan Advantage Group]
Love’s opens first new location of 2026, with no truck parking
Love’s Travel Stops earlier this month opened its first new location of 2026 in Alamosa, Colorado.
Located at 138 Broadway Ave., the store sits just southwest of the intersection of Highways 17 and 160.
The Alamosa country store includes Love’s fresh food items such as sandwiches, salads, wraps and fresh-cut fruit prepared on-site daily. The food is made in an open kitchen concept where customers can see food items prepared. The location also includes Godfather’s Pizza.
The new stop, which the company calls a country store, is largely focused on serving the general public and RVers and does not offer truck parking. RVers will have access to three RV parking spaces and an RV dump.
[Related: Love's plans to add 1,500 parking spaces as part of $700M investment in 2026]
