Twenty-four Republican attorneys general sent a letter on Sept. 16 to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asking the agency to block the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Advanced Clean Fleets regulation, which would require fleet owners operating in the state to use electric trucks.
The attorneys general argue California’s regulation impacts national transportation industries and violates the sovereignty of other states. They say the federal Clean Air Act (CAA) preempts states from establishing emission standards for motor vehicles. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson (R) said, “[W]e cannot allow one state to dictate policy on an issue that’s reserved for the federal government.”
The EPA and CARB had not responded to the letter as of Oct. 15.
The background
The Advanced Clean Fleets regulation set emission standards for truck fleets starting in 2024 and established standards to transition all California trucks to zero emissions by 2045. CARB Chair Liane Randolph argued the regulation was “a reasonable and innovative approach to clean up the vehicles on our roads and ensure that Californians have the clean air that they want and deserve.”
The CAA sets federal emission standards for motor vehicles. Under the act, states can request waivers to enact different standards “at least as protective of public health and welfare as applicable Federal standards.”
California requested a preemption waiver and authorization on Nov. 15, 2023, under the CAA to implement the rule. The waiver would allow the state to enact standards stricter than the CAA. It had not been granted as of Oct. 15, 2024.
Following the CARB’s waiver request, the EPA published a notice on July 12 in the Federal Register scheduling a public hearing and opening a written comment period.
Republican attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming signed the letter to the EPA opposing the waiver request.
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