Back in March, NRLA-NY, along with many other business organizations, submitted comments to the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation against the state permanently adopting California’s Omnibus Low-NOx (nitrogen oxide) regulations for heavy-duty on-highway (HDOH) engines and vehicles (Omnibus regulations). No revised rule or anything had come out since. However, on July 6, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the Truck & Engine Manufacturers Association and several original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) entered into an agreement by which California will align with EPA’s regulations for nitrogen oxide emissions beginning with model year 2027 trucks.
This development is significant because NY, and many other states, were working towards or had aligned with the CARB rules regarding emissions for trucks. The EPA regulations were developed with industry input and considering technological feasibility, which makes them much more realistic. While this California change does not prevent any state from adopting the original CARB rules, it does make it much less likely since California has been seen as setting the standard on clean energy and air issues.
NRLA-NY will continue to work with our business and industry partners to help ensure that NYS does not adopt the original CARB standards but follows in California’s footsteps in aligning with the EPA standards.
Read more about this development here.