More than 80 representatives of stakeholder groups and legislative offices attended a legislative briefing held by Senator Michael Moore (D-Milbury) on Jan. 28 to learn more about the impacts of the Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) and Heavy-Duty Omnibus (HDO) rules on end-users of medium- and heavy-duty (MHD) trucks.

After an introduction from Senator Moore, who has sponsored Senate Docket 137, An Act relative to responsibly reducing emissions in the transportation sector, Kevin Weeks, TAM’s Executive Director, led a panel overview of how the ACT / HDO rules have impacted the ability of the end-users to acquire cleaner and much needed MHD trucks. Panelists included Chris Marsh, Vice President of Advantage Truck Group; Gerry Carney, President of CN Wood; Chris Cronin, former Director of the Town of Andover’s Department of Public Works; and Mark Molloy, Principal of Cascade Strategies.

The panel presentation provided an overview of the MHD truck purchasing process from truck dealer to upfitter to purchaser; a discussion of the direct impacts of the ACT/HDO rules; the perspective of a large municipal purchaser of MHD vehicles and strategies for encouraging cleaner emissions in the short and long term.

The presentation represents a continuing series of education and advocacy events led by end-users of MHD Truck to inform key policymakers about real-world impacts of the ACT / HDO rules while also highlighting attainable emissions reductions strategies today.

The web conference was recorded on Zoom; you can view it here. If a passcode is required, enter 6i%^app7

 

 

From Boston 25 News on Jan. 14.

The sale of semi and other heavy-duty trucks has plummeted 99% in Massachusetts as the result of new environmental regulations designed to reduce carbon emissions, according to the association that represents dealers in Massachusetts.

“There was over 1,000 new vehicles on order at this time last year. Today there’s less than ten,” said Kevin Weeks, Executive Director, Transportation Association of Massachusetts.

Weeks said manufacturers are prohibited from selling diesel trucks unless they also have buyers for electric trucks, and he said there is scarce demand for electric due to a lack of available inventory, significantly higher prices, and nearly non-existent charging infrastructure.

To read the full article and watch the video report, visit the Boxton 25 News website.

On Dec. 23, More than 46 Massachusetts state legislators requested that the Commonwealth’s adoption of the Advanced Clean Truck and Heavy Duty Omnibus rules be delayed until January 2027.

Read the letter below sent to Governor Maura Healy and Bonnie Heiple, Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. A signed PDF version is available to download and print.

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December 23, 2024

Dear Governor Healey and Commissioner Heiple,

We write to request a delay of the upcoming Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) rule that will come into effect January 1, 2025. While we all want to reduce emissions from the transportation sector, implementing the ACT rule at this time may unintentionally lead to more emissions while harming our public and private sector partners throughout the Commonwealth.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s (MassDEP’s) recent decision to delay the heavy-duty omnibus (HDO) rule by one year and exercise discretion for the enforcement of the ACT rule for government purchases of snowplows and street sweepers recognizes the difficulty public and private fleet owners currently face. However, this decision did not provide real relief for our municipalities and industries that rely on access to new, cleaner medium- and heavy-duty trucks (MHDs).

The fact remains that technology and infrastructure have simply not reached the level where they need to be to support the widespread adoption of electric MHDs at this time. Electric MHD technology is improving, but there still remain large gaps in the number and types of available electric vocational trucks that our public and private sector partners rely on. Even with the Commonwealth’s rebate program for electric MHDs, the cost of these electric trucks are two to three times more expensive than their clean diesel or other clean technology counterparts. Finally, even if a public or private sector entity purchased an electric MHD, we have more work to do to build out our electric infrastructure. We recognized this fact in our recently passed clean energy law which specifically directed the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Coordinating Council (EVICC) to report on the needs for charging MHD throughout the Commonwealth.

Current sales within the Commonwealth have shown that our state, municipal and private partners have shied away from purchasing electric MHDs for the aforementioned reasons. It is unrealistic to think recent amendments to the ACT rule adopted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) will incentivize manufacturers or end-users to change their ways. Our public and private sector fleet managers are tasked with investing their limited resources in a reasonable and responsible manner – whether working within a limited municipal budget or buying a vehicle that can reliably perform the task it is needed for. As a result, implementing the ACT rule on January 1st will most likely lead to our public and private sector partners keeping their existing dirtier trucks on the road for a longer period of time. Given the estimate that fifty percent (50%) of the Commonwealth’s truck inventory pre-dates the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 2010 clean engine standards, we will be losing the opportunity to retire some of these trucks in the coming year as newer, cleaner diesel or other clean technology driven MHD cannot even be purchased.

We recognize that the Commonwealth sought to be one of the earliest adopters of the ACT rule. Delaying the ACT rule for a year or two does not mean that we will be retreating from the critical task of reducing emissions from the transportation sector. A delay in the ACT rule means that we will have additional time to build out our electric infrastructure, manufacturers will continue to improve electric MHD technology, and our public and private sector partners can reasonably budget for future electric MHD purchases tomorrow while purchasing cleaner MHDs today.

We appreciate your consideration of this matter and respectfully ask that you delay the Commonwealth’s implementation of the ACT rule.

Members of the Massachusetts State Legislature

 

Trucking organizations representing Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Washington and Rhode Island recently wrote to the governors of these states. They wrote to express their concerns about the Advanced Clean Truck rules, which will take effect in 2025 and 2027.

The letter is available as a PDF to download but also below.

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Dear Governors Polis, Healey, Murphy, Lujan Grisham, Hochul, Kotek McKee, Inslee and Governor-Elect Ferguson:

On behalf of the trucking industry in each of your respective states, we are writing to express our collective concerns with the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) rules, which are set to take effect at the beginning of 2025 and 2027.

In your letter to the Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association on November 8, 2024, you cite the important role ACT plays in our states’ plans to achieve our greenhouse gas emissions-reduction goals and the threat of climate change.

To be clear, we fully support these goals, and the trucking industry has worked collaboratively with government partners across the country for years to reduce the emissions from heavy-duty trucks. In fact, 60 trucks today equal the output of one in 1988, and, since the implementation of clean diesel technology in 1974, pollutants have been reduced by 99 percent. These reductions are in part due to the trucking industry’s partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) SmartWay program. The SmartWay program is a public-private partnership with the shared goal of reducing overall emissions and greenhouse gases, cutting fuel use, and improving freight sustainability. Our associations and many of our members voluntarily became partners in the SmartWay program and have worked closely with the EPA since the program was launched in 2004. The program has been an outstanding success as SmartWay companies have avoided emitting 170 million metric tons of CO2, 2.8 million short tons of NOx, and 115,000 short tons of PM, which helps protect the environment and keep Americans healthy.

The damage that our industry will incur by implementing ACT on its current rushed timeline will curtail these critical efforts as clean diesel truck availability will become limited, keeping older, heavier polluting trucks on the road. It will also lead to the inevitable loss in jobs and businesses. Rather, we encourage your states to look at an alternative approach, similar to the SmartWay program, which is a voluntary program with a proven record of success and widely supported by the industry. We are asking that the ACT date for implementation be deferred in order to ensure that our dealers and trucking companies are not unduly harmed, and to provide for an opportunity to work together to find a solution that works toward our state’s environmental goals.

The situation on the ground has changed since ACT was adopted. The extended recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic diminished resources for manufacturers, dealers, and operators alike. The entire supply chain shifted to prioritize essential services and investments. While our industry can adapt and comply with reasonable regulations, ACT has already significantly impacted dealer operations well ahead of the official start date.

From the West Coast to the East Coast, economic and structural limitations severely limit the American trucking industry. By and large, interstate electric infrastructure is completely lacking. Take New York for example, since ACT’s passage in 2021, not a single publicly available charging station has been built for medium and heavy-duty vehicle charging statewide. And while truck operators in Washington, California, and Oregon appreciate the continued attempt to secure federal funding for an EV truck charging corridor along Interstate 5, the reality is that it will take years to complete. We need this infrastructure now.

We are also cognizant of a changing political environment. As ACT rules were initially pursued, they met a strong opponent in President Donald Trump’s administration—which passed a 2019 resolution effectively removing California’s legal authority to set vehicle emissions rules and set zero-emission vehicle mandates. By all indications, with President Trump’s history of comments and regulations regarding emissions and electric vehicles, it is within reason to believe his administration will renew his, since lapsed, 2019 resolution and ultimately pull the Clean Air Act waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency. David Heller, Senior VP of Government Affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA), has already indicated that national groups are prepared to discuss emissions regulations with a new Trump presidency.

If the Trump administration is only going to reverse course, is it worth the collateral damage of trying to implement these ill-timed and likely fatal regulations? Rather, we stand ready to have meaningful conversations on actions the industry can take today to immediately reduce emissions.

Trucks are the backbone of our nation’s economy. Communities across the country depend largely on trucks to move their goods. A census bureau report found that, in 2017, the latest year with available data, trucks transported 71.6% of all goods in the United States. This equates to $10.4 trillion. In other words, trucking is the largest single mode form of goods transportation by a longshot. When the trucking industry suffers, so to do all the sectors of the economy that rely on it. Access to critical goods, medicines, and care devices are at-risk. Major infrastructure projects and essential municipal services will be delayed. Even clean energy projects—from solar to wind—won’t move forward without trucks. None of this happens without trucks.

Right now, dealers across the country are struggling to find a way to navigate this situation. Many will not survive the economic impact of these rules. Many will shut down after being in business for generations. Many will cut jobs. Many will lose everything.

At our core, the greater American trucking industry supports the goals of ACT. We are not pushing back because we’re opposed to sustainable change. It is possible to work together to develop a commonsense solution which supports each of our states’ business and environmental goals. Once we ensure “business-as-usual” for truck operators, dealers, and manufacturers and a true commitment to a shared approach to reducing emissions, then we can take meaningful steps towards getting more electric trucks on the road. Collectively, we welcome the opportunity to sit down to discuss this situation, but let us be clear, we are running out of time.

Sincerely,

• Gregory Fulton, President/CEO Colorado Motor Carriers Association
• Kendra Hems, President Trucking Association of New York
• Kevin Weeks, Executive Director Transportation Association of Massachusetts
• Jana Jarvis, President & CEO Oregon Trucking Association
• Jennifer Blazovic, Interim Executive Director New Jersey Motor Truck Association
• Christopher Maxwell, President & CEO Rhode Island Trucking Association
• Johnny R. Johnson, Managing Director New Mexico Trucking Association
• Sheri Call, President & CEO Washington Trucking Association

From Transport Topics.

The sale of zero-emission vehicles in California over the past two years has been better than anticipated, but the regulatory emphasis on transitioning fleets from diesel to electric has left some of the state’s large truck dealers with an inability to obtain new diesel trucks to sell to carriers.

“Both the Advanced Clean Trucks and low NOx Omnibus regulations are severely limiting the availability of new trucks in California and California opt-in states,” Mike Tunnell, California-based senior director of environmental affairs/research for American Trucking Associations, told the California Air Resources Board at a recent hearing.

“As noted in CARB Executive Officer Steven Cliff’s recent memo to the board,” he said, “the ACT requirements are being pushed onto the dealerships and fleets. Internal combustion engine sales fleets are experiencing restrictions on the availability of new ICE trucks. And, when they are able to purchase them, these trucks come at a significant price premium.

Read the full article on Transport Topics.