A coalition of states is challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s new truck emission standards in federal court.
On Monday, May 13, 24 states filed a petition for review in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit challenging the EPA’s new truck emission standards that were finalized in March. The coalition is being led by Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers, who also filed a lawsuit against California’s Advanced Clean Fleets rule the same day. All 24 plaintiff states are represented by Republican attorneys general.
Although details have yet to be filed, the states will argue that the new truck emission standards exceed EPA’s statutory authority. The petition for review calls the final rule “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and not in accordance with law.”
In a news release, Hilgers said the truck emission standards “defy reality.” The attorney general added that electric trucks are inefficient and costly. Consequently, forcing the adoption of electric trucks will harm Nebraskans by increasing the costs of interstate transportation, raising prices for goods and burdening the electric power grid.
“California and an unaccountable EPA are trying to transform our national trucking industry and supply chain infrastructure,” Hilgers said in a statement. “This effort – coming at a time of heightened inflation and with an already-strained electrical grid – will devastate the trucking and logistics industry, raise prices for customers and impact untold number of jobs across Nebraska and the country. Neither California nor the EPA has the constitutional power to dictate these nationwide rules to Americans.”
We are leading multi-state coalitions in two lawsuits to stop both the Biden Administration & the State of California from imposing electric-vehicle mandates on truck owners & operators throughout the country @TeamPillen @nebraskatrucker More: https://t.co/uSQtFbevfr pic.twitter.com/iriegVgc4z
— Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers (@NEAttorneyGen) May 13, 2024
EPA’s new truck emission standards will require 25% of new sleeper-cab tractors to be zero-tailpipe-emission trucks by 2032.
Although manufacturers can reach the requirement through a variety of technologies, there is a focus on battery-electric due largely to price and charging infrastructure.
The purchase price of an electric truck is about $400,000, more than double the cost of a diesel-powered truck. That price gap widens when accounting for interest over the life of a 60-month loan.
Electric trucks also have a range of less than 300 miles, less than a third of a diesel truck. Due to the required charging time, it would take an electric four to five days to make a 1,000-mile run that a diesel-powered truck could do in just two days.
In a cost analysis published by Ryder, the megacarrier found converting to electric trucks will double its Class 8 vehicle operating costs. That additional cost will trickle down to the consumer, resulting in a 1% increase to overall inflation.
The federal lawsuit challenging EPA’s truck emission standards comes shortly after Republican lawmakers introduced a resolution to undo the final rule.
On May 1, Sens. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., and Dan Sullivan, R-Ark., along with Rep. John James, R-Mich., announced they are introducing Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions to invalidate the EPA’s latest rules setting stricter emission standards for both heavy-duty trucks and passenger vehicles.
Sullivan concluded his remarks with a statement from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.
“Small-business truckers make up 96% of trucking and could be regulated out of existence if the EPA’s misguided mandate comes into effect,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said in the statement. “This could have devastating effects on the reliability of America’s supply chain and ultimately on the cost and availability of consumer goods. Local mom-and-pop trucking businesses would be suffocated by the sheer cost and operational challenges of effectively mandating EV trucks. We thank Sen. Ricketts and Sen. Sullivan for their leadership in Congress in standing up for America’s small-business truckers to fight EPA’s unworkable emission regulations.” LL
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