House Republicans have introduced resolutions to eliminate Advanced Clean Trucks and other California vehicle emission rules despite the Government Accountability Office stating precisely that Congress cannot do that.
On Thursday, April 3, Rep. John James, R-Mich., introduced a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to reverse the Environmental Protection Agency waiver for Advanced Clean Trucks. On the same day, Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., introduced a resolution to terminate the heavy-duty “Omnibus” low-NOx rule and Advanced Clean Cars II. Another resolution also attempts to undo Advanced Clean Cars II.
“(California Gov. Gavin) Newsom administration’s irrational plan to ban gas-powered cars and trucks is an affront to the freedom of Californians and an economic burden to the whole country,” Kiley said in a statement. “The Biden Administration aided and abetted this insanity with special waivers. With the Congressional Review Act resolutions introduced today, we have an opportunity to return to economic reality and restore common sense.”
Companion resolutions were introduced in the Senate by Republican Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (West Virginia), Deb Fischer (Nebraska) and Markwayne Mullin (Oklahoma).
“As we saw under the Biden administration, what happens in California doesn’t stay in California,” Fischer said in a statement. “Their emissions regulation will cripple the truck manufacturing industry nationwide, overloading companies and truckers with expensive, heavy-handed requirements. This inevitably leads to increased prices for families across the nation. My resolution will overturn the Biden administration’s waiver allowing the (Advanced Clean Trucks) regulation to take effect without congressional review,”
If passed, the resolutions are all but guaranteed to be challenged in court. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has determined twice that EPA waivers under the Clean Air Act are not subject to CRA resolutions.
Congressional Review Act and EPA waivers
The CRA allows Congress to review major rules enacted by agencies, but EPA waivers for Advanced Clean Trucks and other California vehicle emission regulations are not rules, according to the GAO.
Within 60 days of a major rule going into effect, any member of Congress can challenge that rule through a CRA resolution. If a simple majority of Congress signs off on a CRA joint resolution of disapproval, the regulation is eliminated. Furthermore, an agency cannot come back and implement a rule rescinded by a CRA resolution or anything substantially similar. If such a rule ever wants to see the light of day again, it would require the approval of Congress through legislation.
However, Congress never got the chance to review the EPA waivers for Advanced Clean Trucks or other California emission rules.
When the waivers were granted during the Biden administration, they were not submitted to Congress. That’s because the GAO had determined that the waivers are, by definition, not rules.
Three years ago, Sen. Shelley Capito, R-W.V., asked the GAO whether the waiver for Advanced Clean Cars is considered a rule under the CRA. In November 2023, the government watchdog agency determined it is not.
Although the waiver for Advanced Clean Trucks was granted in April 2023, before that determination, waivers for the heavy-duty Omnibus rule and Advanced Clean Cars were granted in January 2023. In those notices, the EPA referred to the GAO’s determination when explaining why they were not being submitted to Congress as rules.
Republicans ignoring GAO
Undeterred, Republicans are following through with promises to get rid of Advanced Clean Trucks through a CRA resolution.
Following up on President Donald Trump’s executive order directing agencies to terminate “state emissions waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline-powered automobiles,” the EPA submitted the three waivers to Congress and the GAO for CRA review in February. Days after, Kiley announced his intent to introduce a CRA resolution to eliminate Advanced Clean Cars II.
When the EPA submitted the waivers to the GAO, it failed to address the conflict with the GAO’s determination from just a few months prior that the waivers are not rules. Despite several requests by the GAO to explain the inconsistencies, the EPA never did.
In March, the GAO issued another letter doubling down on its stance that EPA waivers are not subject to CRA resolutions.
Environment and Public Works Committee Republicans told Land Line in an email at the time that Capito, the group’s chairman, is backing the EPA’s determination that the waivers are rules subject to the CRA.
“Chairman Capito continues to agree with the EPA that these waivers are rules and subject to a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act,” an EPW Republicans spokesperson said. “There is nothing in the Congressional Review Act that allows GAO to overrule an agency’s determination that an action is a rule under that statute.”
Democrat Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff issued a joint statement criticizing the Trump administration’s “weaponization” of the EPA. The senators are members of the Environment and Public Works Committee.
“By ignoring decades of precedent and the plain text of the Congressional Review Act, the Trump EPA is attempting to sell out our nation’s public health and environmental protections to the same polluting industries that bankrolled much of Trump’s campaign,” the senators said. “Congress put in place California’s ability to set vehicle emissions standards in the Clean Air Act, and California emission standards have protected generations of Americans against fossil fuel emissions that poison our air and heat our planet.”
On Friday, April 4, just hours before the senators announced their CRA resolutions, the Senate parliamentarian ruled that EPA waivers are not subject to the CRA, reinforcing the GAO rulings. The parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, advises the Senate on the rules and procedures of the chamber. MacDonough has been the parliamentarian since 2012.
Trucking stakeholders eager for regulatory rollback
Several trucking stakeholders have expressed support for the EPA’s move to roll back Advanced Clean Trucks and the heavy-duty Omnibus rule.
American Truck Dealers applauded the resolutions to eliminate these regulations. The association pointed to a 50% reduction in California truck sales as a result of the rule, as higher prices and limited charging are preventing carriers from adopting electric trucks.
“Approval of the Congressional Review Act resolutions are a top priority for ATD,” ATD President Jacqueline Gelb told Land Line in an email. “Dealers have been losing diesel truck allocations in California for the past year, making it difficult for them to provide customers with the trucks they need. This year, five additional states began enforcing California’s unachievable regulations, exacerbating the problem. ATD supports one national standard and believes adopting the CRA resolutions will provide the quickest relief to an industry already experiencing market disruption.”
The Specialty Equipment Market Association expressed enthusiasm for the resolutions, stating that “an ICE vehicle ban through EV mandates” like Advanced Clean Trucks would be “a significant hit to the nation’s economy.”
SEMA said the industry delivers a $337 billion economic impact each year and supports more than 1.3 million American jobs.
In February, 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.” LL
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