Here’s what you need to know:
- President Trump on Thursday signed H.J. Resoutions 87, 88 and 89 revoking waivers granted to California for its Advanced Clean Trucks and low-NOx Omnibus rule on heavy trucks and its future ban on gas-powered cars.
- The action will be challenged in court by California, which has had authority to set its own air quality standards under the Clean Air Act. CARB Chair Liane Randolph called the action "unconstitutional, illegal and foolish."
- Removal of the ACT and Omnibus rules will enable truck dealers in California and CARB opt-in states to immediately begin selling 50-state diesel engines without a requirement to selling corresponding zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs).
California's regulatory autonomy to set emissions regulations for medium- and heavy-duty trucks appears dead.
President Donald J. Trump Thursday signed H.J. Res. 87 and 89 officially revoking EPA waivers granted to California's Air Resources Board (CARB) for its Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) and low-NOx Omnibus rules.
The President's action came after the House and Senate both recently voted to rescind 2024 waivers granted by the EPA to the state for its regulations.
President Donald J. Trump signs a resolution revoking an EPA waiver previously granted to California's Air Resources Board.The White House
Trump also signed H.J. Res. 88 blocking California's plans to phase out gas-powered cars.
The state has vowed to fight the action in court. Gov. Gavin Newsom's spokesperson Daniel Villaseñor told the AP Wednesday, “If it’s a day ending in Y, it’s another day of Trump’s war on California. We’re fighting back.”
CARB Chair Liane Randolph was equally adamant in response to the action Thursday.
“Despite the President’s signature, this remains an unconstitutional, illegal and foolish attempt to undermine California’s clean air protections. We welcome Gov. Newsom’s and California Attorney General Bonta’s prompt legal action and look forward to judicial review,” she wrote.
“In the meantime, CARB will use every tool at its disposal to continue our critical work to clean the air and address the climate crisis. The health and well-being of all Californians depends on it — especially those who live in underserved communities with unhealthy air. We look forward to engaging with the state legislature, stakeholders and the public as we follow the Governor’s executive order to further advance the state’s clean vehicle transition.”
Hours later, Newson signed an executive order assigning CARB to develop new rules to meet state and federal law and enable the state to move forward with its regulatory agenda.
President Trump didn't seem worried about that fight Thursday, stating at his signing ceremony that the resolutions "will kill the California mandates forever, and they're never coming back."
[RELATED: California repeals ZEV purchase mandate in face of mounting pressure]
Trump said Thursday his actions go into effect immediately, but it is possible it could take a little time for them to hit the market in the four states (California, Washington, New York and New Jersey) where California's rules remain in effect.
CARB stated last month it believes its Clean Truck Partnership signed with truck OEMs remains legally binding, and to date no OEMs have announced their intent to deviate or disregard the agreement. But the legality of partnership has been questioned by others in the trucking industry and is likely to be immediately challenged in the weeks ahead.
Craig Segall, who as deputy executive officer for CARB helped write California's clean truck rules, recently told TPS sister publication CCJ, "Any truck manufacturers who thought California was off the board were just proven wrong. It’s time for them to finally behave accordingly and bring cheap powerful EV trucks to market at scale.”
Newson's executive order Thursday also instructs CARB to continue to identify, maintain and update publicly available lists of OEMs to who continue to meet the state's regulations and "prioritize these manufacturers in government purchasing decisions" moving forward.
And, at a national level, the trucking industry remains in line to adopt the EPA's most recent Phase 3 greenhouse gas and NOx emission standards in 2027, despite EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin's statement in March that he'd like to reconsider the regulations.
Within transportation, Thursday's news was met with substantial praise.
The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) and American Truck Dealers (ATD) immediately spoke positively of the President's actions Thursday.
“America’s franchised dealers applaud President Trump for signing bipartisan legislation to stop California regulators from banning sales of new gas vehicles and diesel trucks,” the association stated.
The American Trucking Associations (ATA) was equally grateful.
“Today, common sense prevailed. We thank President Trump, EPA Administrator Zeldin and congressional leadership for taking decisive action to end crippling, detached-from-reality rulemakings that would have imposed devastating economic consequences on American businesses and families,” ATA President and CEO Chris Spear said. “This is not the United States of California. With the stroke of his pen, President Trump is restoring the certainty that the trucking industry needs to deliver for our nation as we continue to reduce our environmental impact.”
“The trucking industry won a tremendous victory today,” added Clean Freight Coalition Executive Director Jim Mullen. “Eliminating California’s disastrous regulations is a critical victory, but additional course correction of the Biden’s EPA’s policies is still necessary. The CFC will continue to collaborate with the EPA and industry stakeholders to correct the Biden EPA’s ill-advised Greenhouse Gas Phase 3 and NOx regulations.”
[RELATED: Clean Truck deal architect says emissions pact with OEMs 'going forward']
Added The Transport Project, a coalition of fleets, OEMs and dealers committed to decarbonization, “The Transport Project supports efforts to advance the implementation of clean commercial trucks and buses. The best way to do so is through one national standard that equitably treats all clean technologies and allows fleets the flexibility needed to meet differing applications and duty cycles. Further, that standard must reflect technological and operational realities with an achievable timetable.
“We support the actions of the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, and President Trump to restore balance, fairness, and uniformity in fleet emission standards and reaffirm a national all-of-the-above clean vehicle deployment approach.”
