Washington — The American Trucking Associations today thanked President Trump for revoking California’s ruinous electric vehicle mandates and was honored to be part of the White House ceremony that marked a major step forward for setting realistic and achievable national emissions standards.
“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,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “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 resolutions, passed by Congress under the Congressional Review Act and signed today by President Trump, roll back federal waivers granted to California under the Biden administration that allowed the state to set unrealistic and unachievable emissions and electrification mandates that could be adopted by the rest of the nation. They prevent California from setting de facto national emissions policies in the future and rightfully restore that power back to the EPA:
- A resolution championed by Rep. John James (R-Michigan) and Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska) revokes an EPA waiver that allowed California and other states to enforce its Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) regulation. ACT, which has been adopted by 11 states, requires medium- and heavy-duty truck manufacturers to sell increasing percentages of zero-emission vehicles from 2024-2035.
- A resolution championed by Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-California) and Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma) revokes an EPA waiver that allowed California and other states to enforce its Low NOx Omnibus rule. This rule, which has been adopted by ten states, imposes costly emissions standards on new truck sales.
A total of nine trucking industry leaders with ATA joined the President in the East Room of the White House for the signing ceremony, including three professional truck drivers from America's Road Team. Gina Jones, a professional driver for Werner Enterprises and an America's Road Team captain, was invited to the podium by President Trump to deliver remarks.
"We cannot allow one state’s regulations to disrupt our entire nation’s supply chain," said Jones. "Allowing California to do so would have negatively impacted the hundreds of thousands of truck drivers who deliver critical goods across the country each and every day."
The trucking industry for more than five years has warned that California's EV mandates were out of step with the operational realities of our industry and risked imposing massive costs on fleets, businesses, and consumers.
Electric truck technology and charging infrastructure have not caught up with the wishful thinking of unelected Sacramento bureaucrats. Compared with the 15 minutes it takes to fuel a diesel truck to go 1,200 miles, it takes six to eight hours to charge an electric truck that at best can travel 200 miles on a single charge. More trucks would be needed to move the same amount of freight, at a much slower rate, while in search of nonexistent charging locations. The added costs would have decimated the trucking industry and left consumers facing massive delays in shipments of vital goods, like groceries and health care products.
We thank the Trump administration, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, and congressional leaders for hearing these concerns and charting a commonsense path forward toward emissions reductions while prioritizing the men and women of the trucking industry.
Trucks today produce 99% fewer nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter emissions than those on the road decades ago, and new trucks cut carbon emissions by over 40 percent compared to trucks manufactured in 2010. As a result, 60 of today’s trucks emit what just one truck did in 1988.
“We’ve done our part to reduce carbon emissions while keeping America's economy moving,” Spear added. “But what we need is federal leadership to set realistic and achievable national emissions standards. And today brings us one step closer toward that goal.”
ATA will continue to work with federal policymakers to develop realistic, achievable, and cost-effective national emissions standards that allow the trucking industry to continue delivering for the American people.