After failing to get federal approval and amid a legal battle with a coalition of Republican-led states, the California Air Resources Board has agreed to repeal a regulation that would have forced fleets to transition to electric trucks.
In a court filing in two cases, CARB agreed to begin the process of officially terminating Advanced Clean Fleets rules. As part of a settlement in a pair of lawsuits led by the state of Nebraska and the California Trucking Association, the move builds upon a major defeat earlier this year for what some stakeholders have called an electric truck mandate.
Referring to Advanced Clean Fleets as “electric truck mandates,” Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers called the rules “shortsighted and damaging.”
“The tide is starting to turn, as California has agreed to take the necessary steps to withdraw the Advanced Clean Fleets Rule,” Hilgers said in a statement. “This settlement is a huge win for everyone in Nebraska, from our outstanding logistics industry that is critical to the Nebraska economy, for consumers who would have faced higher prices and for the rule of law. I am grateful for the strong coalition of sister states who joined our fight against this radical mandate.”
Approved by CARB in 2023, Advanced Clean Fleets required all drayage trucks operating in California to be zero-direct-emission trucks by 2035. Any fleet with at least 50 vehicles or more than $50 million in annual revenue had to transition its entire fleet to electric trucks by 2042. The rule applied to out-of-state fleets that operated at least one truck in California.
Legal challenges to the new truck emission rules followed soon after. The California Trucking Association filed its lawsuit in October 2023. A coalition of 17 states filed a lawsuit in May 2024. Other lawsuits were filed by the American Free Enterprise Chamber of Commerce and the Specialty Equipment Market Association.
Set to take effect in full force in January 2024, CARB had to delay the enforcement of Advanced Clean Fleets just days before the scheduled start date. California was still waiting on the required waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency. Without federal approval, the stricter vehicle emission regulations could not be enforced.
That approval never came.
Last September, a coalition of 24 Republican state attorneys general urged the EPA to deny CARB’s waiver request. The EPA under former President Joe Biden never responded to the request. Knowing that President Donald Trump’s administration would not grant the waiver, CARB withdrew its request, effectively killing Advanced Clean Fleets.
Technically, Advanced Clean Fleets was still in the books, keeping the lawsuits alive. On April 25, the California Trucking Association’s lawsuit was put on hold after CARB agreed to repeal the regulation.
According to court documents, CARB will propose rulemaking action to repeal Advanced Clean Trucks to the agency’s board in a public hearing by Oct. 31. If approved, the rulemaking action must be officially submitted by Aug. 31, 2026. Until then, California is barred from enforcing any part of the rule. A similar order was filed in the case of the Republican states on Monday, May 5.
The complete elimination of Advanced Clean Fleets could complicate the ultimate goal of Advanced Clean Trucks, which is a zero-tailpipe-emission truck sales mandate for manufacturers. Gov. Gavin Newsom said the two rules “work in tandem to drastically cut air pollution.”
Forcing California fleets to purchase cleaner trucks through Advanced Clean Fleets would have boosted sales of trucks such as electric trucks, which would have helped manufacturers meet requirements under Advanced Clean Trucks. With that incentive now gone, manufacturers could struggle to sell the less efficient and more expensive trucks.
Repealing Advanced Clean Fleets shuts the door on a second bite at the apple for CARB to seek EPA approval if Democrats were to reclaim the White House in 2028. LL
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