U.S. Senate Votes Down EPA Truck Emissions Rules

Earlier this year, a group of 34 Republicans senators introduced legislation that would reverse a new stricter U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule on the emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles.

As The Hill reported last week, the full U.S. Senate has now voted 50-49 for that piece of legislation. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) was the lone Democrat to join Republicans in supporting the bill. The senator argued, “When our country faces record-high inflation and vulnerable supply chains, we cannot let the EPA continue to seize unrestrained power and create regulations that devastate our economy.”

The new regulation, which was finalized in 2022 and calls for emissions levels that are 80 percent stricter than current standards, would make trucks more expensive and raise supply-chain costs. The regulations would apply to heavy duty trucks starting with model year 2027.

The Republican senators who introduced the legislation also argued the “aggressive” EPA rule would incentivize “operators to keep using older, higher-emitting trucks for longer.” Read more here.

According to The Hill, despite the Senate action, the resolution is not expected to prevail. The White House said last Wednesday that President Joe Biden would veto the measure. Given the close vote margin last week, it is almost certain Republicans would not be able to come up with the two-thirds vote margin that is needed to overcome a presidential veto.