A bill introduced in the U.S. Senate this month seeks to repeal heavy-duty emissions standards, eliminate new and existing emissions waivers granted to states, set a national standard for emissions and more.
The “Transportation Freedom Act,” as the legislation is known, was introduced by Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) and co-sponsored by Sens. Tim Sheehy (R-Montana), Jim Banks (R-Indiana) and James Justice (R-West Virginia). It includes several provisions related to heavy-duty truck emissions standards, as well as provisions addressing light- and medium-duty vehicles.
Notably, the bill would repeal Phase 3 of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles. The Phase 3 GHG rule, finalized last year, ramps up CO2 emissions standards for trucks between model years 2027 and 2032.
The Transportation Freedom Act would amend the Clean Air Act to eliminate vehicle emissions waivers, like those granted to California that allow for stricter emissions standards there and in other states who adopt them.
The bill would bar any further waivers from being granted that differ from the emissions standard established by the bill. It also calls for the revocation of existing waivers that have already been granted by EPA, “including any waiver issued … to the State of California for zero-emission vehicle mandates.” This would seem to include CARB’s Truck and Bus Regulation, which bars pre-2010 diesel engines from operating in the state, the more recently-approved Advanced Clean Trucks and Omnibus NOx rules, and more.
In addition, the legislation would repeal Section 177 of the Clean Air Act, which allows other states to adopt California’s motor vehicle emission standards.
The bill would require the EPA to publish new GHG emissions standards for heavy-duty trucks to replace Phase 3 beginning no earlier than model year 2027. Until that rule is finalized, the Phase 2 GHG standards would serve as the interim emission standards for heavy-duty trucks.
Source: CCJPSR Analysis. This is probably a wise bill with regard to the short time frame for stricter emission regulations, post 2027. Under the current phase 3 GHG regulations, it would be difficult if not impossible to achieve the emission targets using the internal combustion engine and zero-emission trucks will continue to experience serious barriers to adoption including high up-front cost, lack of charging infrastructure, duty cycle issues, reduced payload, etc. PSR
Chris Fisher Is Senior Commercial Vehicle Analyst at Power Systems Research
