The State Department of Ecology is proposing amendments to its Clean Vehicles Program in order to mirror recent changes adopted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Public comments on the proposed amendments are due by July 3, 2025. DOE is holding virtual public hearings, which will include a presentation on the proposed rules, on June 24 at 9 a.m. and June 25 at 5 p.m. For more information on the proposed rules and to register for the public hearings, click here. AGC members are encouraged to participate.
Washington State previously enacted a law that adopts CARB’s Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) rules. The ACT program applies to medium- and heavy-duty engine and vehicle manufacturers. It requires manufacturers to gradually sell more new zero-emission models in Washington through model year 2035.
Many concerns have been raised about linking Washington to CARB rules, not the least of which is that truck manufacturers, according to the Washington Trucking Associations, are withholding truck deliveries until a dealer can demonstrate that a Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) truck has been sold. This means dealers, whether they are in-state or out-of-state, who do not sell a ZEV truck in Washington will not receive legacy vehicle allocations, which means that truck dealers cannot sell diesel trucks in Washington State.
According to DOE, recent amendments adopted by CARB and now under consideration in Washington, “respond to industry concerns by easing compliance requirements for the heaviest vehicles. They also streamline implementation and maintain consistency with state and federal laws.”
When it adopted these amendments, CARB indicated that the biggest change comes in the delivery of credits during the sale of a ZEV. Under the amended rule, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) will now receive a credit for a ZEV sale once a unit is delivered to a dealer or truck upfitter. This is a change from the original rule, which did not provide the credit until the unit arrived at the “ultimate purchaser.” The amendments also will now give secondary vehicle manufacturers the option to trade, sell or transfer credits with manufacturers. “Being able to participate in the credit banking and trading system the ACT provides for will give secondary manufacturers greater ability to procure internal combustion engine vehicles where a manufacturer is restricting sales and choosing not to purchase credit,” CARB noted. Plus, the changes also will now provide OEMs a three-year makeup window if they fall short of their ZEV sales requirements in a given year and will enable near zero-emission vehicles (NZEV) to count as a fraction toward a year’s deficit.
In other ACT-related developments:
- Like Washington, Oregon had previously linked itself to the CARB rules. But now, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is delaying enforcement of its Advanced Clean Trucks rule, which went into effect Jan. 1. “Effective immediately, Oregon DEQ will refrain from pursuing enforcement or assessing civil penalties against any manufacturer of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (Classes 2b–8) who does not meet the specified [zero-emission vehicle] sales percentages,” DEQ director Leah Feldon wrote in a memo. The pause is effective for 2025 and 2026.
- Vermont has also paused its own enforcement of the CARB rules.
- Legislation was introduced in the Washington Legislature to delink the state from CARB rules. AGC strongly supported the measure, SB 5091 sponsored by Sen. Matt Boehnke (R-8), but it unfortunately did not pass in the recent legislative session.
- At the federal level, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a resolution which would revoke the waiver allowing California to enforce its own ACT regulations. The measure has not yet been taken up by the Senate.
For more information, contact AGC Chief Lobbyist Jerry VanderWood.