California agrees to repeal electric-truck emissions rule; Nebraska led opposition
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers announces two federal lawsuits against a California regulatory board and the Environmental Protection Agency. May 13, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — Nebraska's efforts to fight California on new electric-truck mandates and related regulations largely ended Monday with California officials moving to repeal the proposed rules.
In a Monday court filing, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Steve Cliff, executive officer of the California Air Resources Board, pledged to formally scrub from the books the 'Advanced Clean Fleets' rule. The regulations, in part, would have required certain trucking companies to transition to electric trucks over time.
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers and his office led a 17-state coalition with the Nebraska Trucking Association to challenge the California rule. Last May, he said it could prevent Nebraska and other states from doing business in California or reaching its ports.
Hilgers on Tuesday, announcing the 'significant victory,' said the 'tide is starting to turn.'
'This settlement is a huge win for everyone in Nebraska, from our outstanding logistics industry that is critical to the Nebraska economy, for consumers who would have faced higher prices, and for the rule of law,' Hilgers said. 'I am grateful for the strong coalition of sister states who joined our fight against this radical mandate.'
Gov. Jim Pillen, who joined Hilgers to announce the lawsuit last year, thanked Hilgers for the fight that he said could have raised prices for consumers.
'Our truckers don't need California bureaucrats forcing electric vehicles into their fleets,' Pillen said in a statement.
California regulators agreed to repeal the currently blocked rule and wait until it receives a Clean Air Act preemption waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Hilgers had previously led a 24-state coalition to block California from getting such a waiver.
In addition to the Nebraska Trucking Association, the Arizona Legislature and attorneys general from the following states joined the lawsuit against California: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.
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