CARB Allows OEMs to Transfer EV Truck Credits Between States
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The California Air Resources Board will so manufacturers can transfer zero-emission vehicle credits between states that also adopted the regulation.
The move was described as a nod to commitments made in the Clean Truck Partnership deal California forged with truck manufacturers as part of the state’s emissions reduction efforts.
The move arrives as many of the 13 states that rubber-stamped California’s rigorous plan to advance zero-emission vehicles and ban sales of new diesel and gas vehicles have halted their plans. The reasons include pushback from local business leaders and politicians, as well as the Trump administration’s aggressive push to rout such programs.
But CARB Chair Liane Randolph said the federal backlash against her state’s emissions goals won’t stall its progress.
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“California’s commitment to cleaner trucks has created an ecosystem of programs and incentives that will continue to drive progress despite the federal administration’s unlawful actions challenging our state’s efforts to reduce emissions and deploy to clean transportation technologies,” Randolph said in a July 24 announcement.
CARB noted the amendments to the ACT plan along with some companion modifications to the state’s Zero-Emission Powertrain Certification Requirements were minor changes for stakeholders “with no significant cost or emissions impact.”
The changes will give manufacturers a “pooling option” to transfer surplus zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) and near-zero emission vehicle (NZEV) credits generated between states that adopted the ACT regulation. CARB also will allow manufacturers to offset a portion of deficits generated in the Classes 7-8 tractor group with Class 2b-3 or Classes 4-8 group ZEV credits for each model year. This change will give manufacturers greater flexibility and “account for fluctuations in ZEV and NZEV sales across states and vehicle classes,” CARB noted.
The amendments also:
- Adjust the minimum all-electric range requirement for NZEV in later years
- Give manufacturers more flexibility for how they retire credits
- Change communication protocols for ZEV connector criteria to certify zero-emission powertrains
Randolph said the amendments “provide manufacturers with flexibility, and we look forward to continued collaboration with manufacturers in efforts to reduce emissions, protect public health and ensure global competitiveness as the rest of the world shifts to zero-emission technologies.”
The states following CARB’s lead are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Most have struggled to meet individual deadlines they’d set to achieve goals set in the CARB regulations due to slow growth in the nascent alternative fuel vehicle industry, including the cost of EV trucks, customer aversion and inadequate charging infrastructure.
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In Washington, the state’s Department of Ecology was asked by Washington Trucking Associations to amend its CARB-configured Clean Vehicle Program Rules. The group represents 500 member companies from small family-run companies to major fleets across the agriculture, forestry, construction, port drayage and general freight markets.
“Still on the books in Washington is the state’s transportation carbon neutral goal by 2050,” Sheri Call, WTA president and CEO, told Transport Topics. “There’s no doubt this will continue to be a push for Washington state. We are trying to offer reasonable solutions that steer us away from EVs as the only answer to get there, and instead adopt an immediate solution to encourage bio and renewable fuels paired with latest diesel technology as a more realistic scenario for heavy trucks.”
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In June, WTA in a letter told state leaders that the commercial trucking sector cannot successfully operate ZEVs in Washington due to issues such as high costs and shifts in technology evolution.
charging infrastructure accessible to commercial vehicles, and said the state’s electric grid is likely unprepared for higher load strains from commercial EVs.
