In a recent development, a group of nineteen states has taken legal action against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding California’s impending diesel truck ban. The coalition filed a lawsuit, claiming that the EPA’s authorization of California’s regulations is in violation of the law.
On June 6, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird publicly announced the lawsuit, arguing that California’s mandate for most heavy-duty semi-trucks to transition to zero-emission vehicles by 2035 is deemed “illegal.”
Bird says that California’s diesel truck ban “forces truckers to buy electric trucks and regulates trucking out of existence through mandating net-zero emissions standards.”
Additionally, Attorney General Brenna Bird raises concerns that California’s diesel truck ban is not only impacting its own state but is also establishing a national precedent. She points out that eight other states have already adopted California’s emission standards, with more states considering doing the same.
The coalition of states firmly maintains that California’s truck ban will have detrimental effects on the trucking industry. They argue that it will lead to increased costs, severely impact the demand for alternative fuels like biodiesel, and ultimately result in significant job losses in the trucking sector nationwide.
The lawsuit further contends that California’s Advanced Clean Trucks regulation violates not only the Clean Air Act but also other federal laws. This legal action aims to challenge the validity and legality of the regulation in question.
“The EPA and California have no right or legal justification to force truckers to follow their radical climate agenda,” said Attorney General Bird. “America would grind to a halt without truckers who deliver our food, clothes and other necessities. But rather than support our hard-working truckers, Biden continues to empty their wallets and force them to drive electric trucks for his radical climate change agenda. Iowa isn’t going to take a backseat as the EPA and California try to regulate truckers out of business. We’re pushing back.”
In a show of solidarity, a coalition of eighteen additional states has joined Iowa in the lawsuit against the EPA. These states include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, South Carolina, Utah, and West Virginia. By banding together, these states aim to amplify their collective voice in challenging California’s diesel truck ban and its potential nationwide implications.
