NAM Regulatory Update: Final Heavy-Duty Tailpipe Rule Presents Challenges

As part of an effort to bring more information about the regulatory and legal environment facing American manufacturers, NFPA is monitoring the newsfeed of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) and will be bringing important updates like this to the attention of NFPA members.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s new heavy-duty tailpipe emissions rule is unrealistic and unfeasible, the NAM said Friday (3/29/24).

What’s going on: “The rule—proposed in April 2023—is part of the ‘Clean Trucks Plan’ unveiled in 2023, which includes light-duty tailpipe and nitrogen oxide rules,” Bloomberg Law reports.

“The[se] ‘Phase 3’ standards build on previous phases of a broader regulatory program to stem greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles such as delivery trucks, long-haulers, and buses.”

The Phase 1 rule was finalized in 2011, and the Phase 2 rule in 2016.

Why it’s problematic: While the new regulation grants automakers more time for implementation than previous versions did—thanks to input from manufacturers and their advocates, including the NAM—it still “fails to reconcile with the realities of current U.S. infrastructure,” according to an NAM social post.

“Critical permitting reforms to strengthen transmission systems and a technology-neutral approach for manufacturers are essential to reaching U.S. climate goals,” the NAM wrote.

What should be done: Congress must reform the broken U.S. permitting system so we can build the electric vehicle charging station infrastructure required to implement a rule of this magnitude, the NAM said earlier this month.