{"id":22475,"date":"2023-06-16T10:45:15","date_gmt":"2023-06-16T14:45:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=22475"},"modified":"2023-06-16T13:01:53","modified_gmt":"2023-06-16T17:01:53","slug":"an-audit-on-the-advanced-clean-fleets-rule-is-bad-for-california-and-bad-for-the-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2023\/06\/16\/an-audit-on-the-advanced-clean-fleets-rule-is-bad-for-california-and-bad-for-the-country\/","title":{"rendered":"An audit on the Advanced Clean Fleets Rule is bad for California and bad for the country"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>By Katelyn Roedner Sutter<\/a> and <\/em>Daniel Barad<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Last month, the California Air Resources Board unanimously voted to adopt the Advanced Clean Fleets Rule<\/a>, which sets purchase requirements for private and government fleets to increasingly transition to zero-emission trucks, and sets a 100% sales requirement for manufacturers in 2036.\u00a0 Advocates and communities across the board lauded CARB for taking a critically necessary step to clean up our air, particularly in communities associated with freight corridors, ports and warehouses, therefore most impacted by truck pollution.<\/p>\n

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Heavy-duty trucks are the largest source<\/a> of smog-forming nitrogen oxide emissions, and emit nearly 40% of the state\u2019s particulate matter – despite being only about 7% of the vehicles in the state.\u00a0 As such, the ACF rule will result in an estimated 5,000 fewer premature deaths<\/a> from health-impacting pollution and generate $57 billion in health savings by 2050. Most of the health benefits of the ACF will be realized by residents in communities exposed to high truck traffic.<\/p>\n

Implementation of the ACF rule is eminently feasible. Every major semitruck manufacturer is offering or developing an electric version of their trucks, and there are more than 125 zero-emission medium-duty and heavy-duty truck models<\/a> currently in production or development in the U.S and this is projected to increase 300%<\/a> in 2023 alone.<\/p>\nAn audit on the Advanced Clean Fleets Rule is bad for California and bad for the country <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n

This rule was unanimously approved by CARB with clear support from communities and the legislature<\/a>. Now, the Joint Legislative Audit Committee is considering asking the State Auditor to review the rule before it has even been fully enacted. The audit process is a critically important tool that the legislature has to ensure accountability and measure performance. This particular audit, however, would be premature at best and potentially deeply harmful to clean air efforts in California and nationally. This is political weaponization of the independent State Auditor\u2019s Office to undermine a robust and open public process that resulted in the adoption of a significant health protective rule.<\/p>\n

In addition to broad support and clear economic and health benefits for the ACF, there are several reasons why this action is misguided and dangerous:<\/p>\n