The Environmental Protection Agency has begun the process of reversing Advanced Clean Trucks and two other California vehicle emission rules, using a method that could make it difficult for future administrations to reinstate them.
On Friday, Feb. 14, the EPA announced it will be sending Congress three rules issued during the Biden administration granting California a waiver for Advanced Clean Cars II, Advanced Clean Trucks and the Heavy-Duty Omnibus regulation. Using the Congressional Review Act, Congress will review the rules and could strike them down with a simple-majority vote.
President Donald Trump’s current approach to reversing California’s vehicle emission rules differs from the approach taken during his first term. In 2019, Trump’s EPA simply revoked the waiver for Advanced Clean Cars, marking the first time one of California’s waivers was stripped away. That sparked a legal challenge that was rendered moot after former President Joe Biden reinstated the waiver when he assumed office.
This time around, Trump’s EPA is using the Congressional Review Act to undo Advanced Clean Trucks and other California rules. The Congressional Review Act requires agencies to submit major rules to Congress for review. Congress has 60 days from when a rule goes into effect to pass a joint resolution of disapproval invalidating a rule.
Although the Advanced Clean Cars II and Omnibus rule waivers just barely fall within that 60-day window, Advanced Clean Trucks was given the green light in March 2023. However, the Trump administration is taking advantage of a loophole in the Congressional Review Act to put Advanced Clean Trucks on the chopping block.
When the EPA granted the waiver for Advanced Clean Trucks, it did not submit the rule to Congress for review.
In its official decision, the EPA concluded that the Congressional Review Act “does not apply because this action is not a rule for purposes of 5 U.S.C. 804(3).”
Per the Congressional Review Act, a rule goes into effect when Congress receives it for review or when it is published in the Federal Register, whichever is later. By finding that Advanced Clean Trucks should have been submitted to Congress, the EPA can decide to do exactly that, effectively restarting the 60-day clock.
“The Biden Administration failed to send rules on California’s 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,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement. “The American people are struggling to make ends meet while dealing with rules that take away their ability to choose a safe and affordable vehicle for their families. As an agency, we are accountable to Congress, but most importantly, we must be accountable to the American people.”
If there are enough votes in Congress to reverse waivers for Advanced Clean Trucks, a new administration could not reinstate it like the Biden administration did with Advanced Clean Cars. Once a rule is struck down through the Congressional Review Act, an agency cannot establish the same rule or a similar one. Reviving a rule voted down by Congress would require legislation approved by Congress instead of the rulemaking process.
Trucking industry reaction
Trucking stakeholders applauded the EPA’s move to roll back Advanced Clean Trucks amid pleas to delay implementation of the rule in five states.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said it appreciates the EPA’s efforts to protect small-business truckers across the country “from California’s regulatory encroachments.”
“Setting 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,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said. “For OOIDA members, 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. Additionally, CARB’s overreaching Omnibus NOx rules have raised prices on new vehicles and increased maintenance costs for trucks already on the road.”
Trucking Association of Massachusetts Executive Director Kevin Weeks said the association looks forward to working with state regulators to find “practical solutions that continue to minimize emissions and promote a cleaner and safer environment in the Commonwealth.” Massachusetts is one of the states that began Advanced Clean Trucks rules this year.
“As the commercial transportation industry has consistently stated, we support initiatives for a cleaner environment and the ongoing effort to reduce emissions wherever feasible,” Weeks told Land Line in an email. “However, the electrification of the medium- and heavy-duty truck segment presents significant challenges. The current state of technology, affordability, applicability and infrastructure are not adequately prepared for widespread electrification in this sector.”
Washington state also began Advanced Clean Trucks in January.
Washington Trucking Association President Sheri Call said revoking the waiver would “significantly benefit (medium- and heavy-duty) trucks, which we would welcome.”
“A fragmented multi-state approach which we currently have going won’t address the industries’ long-term decarbonization challenges and will continue to hamper progress,” Call said. “That, and excluding near-zero emission technologies as prescribed by CARB will impede short-term efforts to reduce diesel emissions. The situation is uncertain due to unpredictable state leadership response and potential lengthy litigation over a waiver revocation.”
The American Trucking Associations also commended the EPA’s move to send Advanced Clean Trucks to Congress for review.
“This is not the United States of California,” ATA President Chris Spear said in a statement. “California should never be given the keys to set national policy and regulate America’s supply chain.” LL
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