The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is accepting comments on its latest draft of the Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) regulations, a rulemaking aimed at reducing emissions from the commercial truck fleet at the direction of the Administration. Government entities such as counties would also be regulated under the new requirements.
The ultimate goal of the ACT regulations is to replace much of the existing light-medium duty and heavier commercial vehicle fleet with electric vehicles by the year 2030. The requirements begin with truck sales and a complicated reporting mandate for fleet operators and brokers aimed at building an inventory of the state's fleet and what types of fuels are currently in use.
However, the latest version of the regulations gives no consideration to implementation costs in the wake of COVID-19, nor does it analyze the feasibility of using electric vehicles in rural areas where topography varies and where new barriers such as public safety power shut-offs could make zero emission vehicle use by counties a hazard to public safety. RCRC filed extensive comments on the latest version of the regulations to engage the agency on rural concerns.
For more information on the ACT regulations, visit CARB's website here.