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The California Air Resources Board said it will delay enforcement of some registration or reporting provisions of its Advanced Clean Fleets regulation, just days before a year-end deadline it had set for trucking companies.
Under the rule, marine transport fleets and others deemed high priority had until Dec. 31 to register any combustion-powered truck operating at intermodal seaports or rail stations. After that date, the registration of trucks with internal combustion engines would be effectively banned, as all new vehicles added to fleets would have to meet zero-emission truck standards.
But on December 28, the state agency, known as CARB, an advisory was released saying it won’t enforce those provisions until the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grants a key resignation establishing her authority.
What Delayed Enforcement Means for Carriers
Throughout its communications, CARB cautioned that delayed enforcement doesn’t give trucking companies room to deploy more combustion-powered vehicles in their fleets after Jan. 1, 2024 — it just makes reporting optional, for now.
“Reporting is optional until a waiver is granted or deemed unnecessary,” CARB said in the release. “However, fleets will be required to report their fleet as it existed on January 1, 2024, as well as any removals or additions to the California fleet as of January 1, 2024, once the waiver is granted or determined not to be necessary.”
If fleets add an internal combustion engine vehicle to the registry after Jan. 1, operators should expect to receive a message saying the vehicle “may be restricted from performing draining services” after the EPA’s decision, he said. the state. This means that fleets could find that the equipment is not allowed.
The Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation requires truck operators to follow one of several timetables for the transition to zero-emission vehicles, depending on the company’s size, type and sector of activity. In addition to banning the registration of combustion-powered vehicles in 2024, for example, the rule gives CARB the power to deregister vehicles that have exceeded their “useful life” of 18 years or 800,000 miles in service.
Enforcement of that provision is also temporarily delayed while CARB awaits clearance from the EPA, according to a letter Tuesday from CARB Executive Director Steven Cliff to Chris Shimoda, senior vice president of government affairs at the California Trucking Association.
“CARB also will not take enforcement action against vehicles that are beyond their useful life periods (as defined in the regulation and including 2007-2009 model year natural gas dump trucks)—meaning CARB will not delist those vehicles—until grant U.S. EPA grants a preemption waiver applicable to the relevant regulatory provisions or determine that a waiver is not necessary,” Cliff said in the letter, seen by Trucking Dive.
Given the possibility of future enforcement, Cliff encouraged truck operators to voluntarily comply with the provisions of the Advanced Clean Fleets regulation, even as CARB awaits a waiver. He also pointed out that the state agency is accepting requests for extensions or exemptions, while enforcement is delayed.
“We look forward to receiving the waiver and continuing to work with our industry partners for a successful implementation,” a CARB spokesperson added via email.
The California Trucking Association is leading the way
The news comes after the California Trucking Association signaled its intention to ask the courts to stop enforcement of the high-priority and carrier fleet clauses as part of lawsuit against CARB.
However, the letter from Cliff to Shimoda reveals that the agency’s decision to delay enforcement was part of an agreement between the two parties. In exchange for the temporary non-enforcement, the trade group agreed not to file for a preliminary injunction pending a waiver request.
“As always, we appreciate the opportunity to discuss matters with regulated parties and other stakeholders. And we are pleased that the parties were able to reach an agreement to avoid the resource-intensive motion practice in this litigation,” Cliff said in the letter.
Shimoda, for his part, confirmed on LinkedIn The news was part of an agreement between the two parties, saying: “A good way to end 2023. Bigger things ahead in 2024!”