Trucking Industry Cheers Congress' Abolishment of California's EV Mandates

WASHINGTON, May 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Trucking Associations is calling today's votes in the U.S. Senate nullifying California's electric vehicle mandates a "monumental victory" for the trucking industry, common sense, and consumers everywhere.

"California is the breeding ground of all bad public policy, and it's long past time that our nation's leadership in Washington stop abdicating its responsibility to unelected, cubicle-dwelling bureaucrats in Sacramento who have no understanding of the real world and how it works. Today's Senate votes send a resounding message nationwide that this is not the United States of California, nor will it ever be," said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. "We appreciate the leadership of President Trump, EPA Administration Zeldin, and leaders in Congress who listened to our concerns and acted decisively to reverse these destructive rulemakings, which would have decimated our industry and unleashed a torrent of economic pain on the American families and businesses that we serve."

The Senate voted today to pass two resolutions that will undo damaging regulations set by California and prevent the Golden State from setting de facto national vehicle policies. Last month, ATA sent a letter urging Republican congressional leaders in the House and Senate to put these resolutions on the floor for a vote. The measures were previously passed by the House and now go to the President's desk for his signature.

The resolution championed by Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska) will revoke 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.

The resolution championed by Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma) will revoke an EPA waiver that allowed California and other states to enforce its Low NOx Omnibus rule. This rule, which has been adopted by 10 states, imposes stringent emissions standards on new truck sales.

Both mandates are untethered from reality and would have been extraordinarily costly to fully implement. Even states that adopted the standards are acknowledging reality by scaling back and delaying implementation.

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 a truck manufactured in 2010. As a result, 60 of today's trucks emit what just one truck did in 1988.

"Trucking is an industry of innovators. We don't need government mandates to tell us how to reduce our environmental impact—we've been doing it for forty years with a record to show, all while moving an ever-increasing percentage of the goods that Americans expect and depend on every day," said Spear.

The resolutions passed by Congress will not only restore EPA's role as the primary authority empowered to establish achievable, nationwide emissions standards, but they will also block California from issuing similar regulations in the future.

American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of 50 affiliated state trucking associations and industry-related conferences and councils, ATA is the voice of the industry America depends on most to move our nation's freight. Follow ATA on X or Facebook. Nothing Without Trucking.

SOURCE American Trucking Associations