EPA Strikes Down Part of Heavy-Duty Truck Inspection Program

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) gave partial approval and partial disapproval on the state of California’s aggressive Clean Truck Check Program (CTC).  EPA approved the portion of the rule that applies to heavy-duty on-road trucks registered in California, and the agency disapproved the applicability of the rule to out-of-state and foreign country registered trucks. In the finding, EPA noted that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) failed to meet legal requirements to apply the rule so broadly under the Clean Air Act, additionally noting that there were concerns over the rule’s potential violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause.  

The CTC rule requires that heavy-duty trucks operating on California roads must undergo periodic smoke inspection tests to show that the equipment’s emission control systems are functioning properly. The regulatory timeline increases frequency of the testing requirements, all the way up to 4 tests per year for drayage and long-haul trucks operating in the state.  Heavy-duty equipment operating within the agricultural industry are only required to test once per year. The testing is directly tied into your vehicles DMV registration process, and failure of an annual emissions test will put a temporary hold on the registration process for the vehicle.  CARB has already announced that they still intend to enforce the regulation to out-of-state and foreign vehicles, but without the approval from EPA, there will be no credit for the reductions that result from enforcement of the rule.