Providing congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to "California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty and Maintenance Provisions; Advanced Clean Trucks; Zero Emission Airport Shuttle; Zero-Emission Power Train Certification; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision".
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This joint resolution, now law, nullifies an EPA notice that had granted California a Clean Air Act waiver to enforce its Advanced Clean Trucks rule and related heavy-duty vehicle emission and warranty standards, meaning that rule now has no force or effect.
The action is part of a broader use of the Congressional Review Act to block California's stricter vehicle emissions standards, which other states have historically been allowed to adopt, affecting national truck manufacturing and emissions policy.
What this law does
What it does
This joint resolution uses the Congressional Review Act to disapprove an EPA notice (88 Fed. Reg. 20688, published April 6, 2023) that had granted California a waiver of federal preemption under the Clean Air Act. That waiver allowed California to enforce its own heavy-duty vehicle and engine emission warranty and maintenance provisions, its Advanced Clean Trucks rule, Zero Emission Airport Shuttle requirements, and Zero-Emission Power Train Certification standards. Because Congress disapproved the rule, it now has no force or effect. The resolution does not itself create new emissions standards or amend the Clean Air Act's waiver provisions; it simply revokes the specific EPA waiver decision, reverting the regulatory status of those California standards to their pre-waiver condition. It became law on June 12, 2025, as Public Law 119-15.
Key provisions
- 1Disapproves the EPA notice granting California's waiver for its heavy-duty vehicle and engine emission warranty and maintenance provisions and related programs, rendering that rule void.
Who is affected
The California Air Resources Board, truck and engine manufacturers that sell vehicles in California and states that adopt California's standards, fleet operators of heavy-duty trucks and airport shuttles, and the Environmental Protection Agency, which issued the now-nullified waiver.
Why it matters
Manufacturers no longer face California's Advanced Clean Trucks and related zero-emission requirements as an enforceable state standard, potentially easing compliance burdens but also removing a driver of stricter emissions rules that other states often mirrored, affecting national heavy-duty vehicle emissions policy.
What changed
Changes to existing law
Repeals EPA notice granting California Clean Air Act preemption waiver (88 Fed. Reg. 20688)
Nullifies the EPA's 2023 decision granting California a waiver for its heavy-duty vehicle emissions and Advanced Clean Trucks standards.
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- The disapproval and nullification of the EPA waiver rule
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Became Public Law No: 119-15.
Official CRS summary
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This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency notice titled California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty and Maintenance Provisions; Advanced Clean Trucks; Zero Emission Airport Shuttle; Zero-Emission Power Train Certification; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision (88 Fed. Reg. 20688) and published on April 6, 2023. Among other elements, the notice grants the California Air Resources Board request for a waiver several of its regulations, including the Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty Regulations and Maintenance Provisions. (Under the Clean Air Act, California may seek waivers of the preemption prohibiting states from enacting certain emission standards.)
Legislative subjects
Air quality; California; Climate change and greenhouse gases; Environmental Protection; Federal preemption; Legislative rules and procedure; Motor carriers; Motor vehicles