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EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the environmental
authority is reconsidering "notorious heavy-duty truck emissions
standards, as well as the agency’s authority to regulate
greenhouse gases altogether." The EPA said it will reconsider
the proposed emissions standards for light-, medium- and
heavy-duty vehicles beginning in model-year 2027.
The industry said the mandates in their current form are
unrealistic given the state of battery-electric technology and
the sheer lack of charging infrastructure.
Mike Kucharski, co-owner of JKC Trucking in Chicago, told The
Center Square the mandates, including forcing companies to buy
expensive electric trucks, would force many trucking companies
to permanently close, setting off a domino effect.
“Ninety-five percent of trucking companies are small businesses
that operate 10 trucks or fewer,” said Kucharski. “Complying
with these mandates would push many carriers out of business
causing more severe price inflation for all goods.”
The stricter emissions standards, set by the Biden
administration in 2022, were aimed at removing pollutants from
truck exhaust and encouraged hydrogen and battery-powered
electric vehicle adoption.
“We need a proven technology because if this technology fails,
the entire supply chain would be dead in the water and failure
is not merely an inconvenience, it would be catastrophic,” said
Kucharski.
A spokesman for the Electric Vehicle Association called the
Trump administration’s decision unfortunate.
CALSTART, an organization focused on transportation
decarbonization, issued a statement following the announcement.
“At a time when the world is rapidly moving toward clean and
zero-emission vehicles, we cannot walk away from our progress.
To do so would cede U.S. leadership in this industry to China
and other countries who continue to lead the global EV race
through advanced, robust policy and market investments,” the
group said.
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