Transportation
The Story of California’s Advanced Clean Trucks Regulation
New CLEE report & webinar tells the story of this first-of-its-kind supply-side regulation for zero-emission trucks
California has been a global pioneer on electric vehicles, and that leadership extends to zero-emission trucks. To address the pollution and disproportionate impacts on disadvantaged communities, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted the first-of-its-kind Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) regulation in 2020. This landmark standard required truckmakers to begin selling zero-emission versions (such as battery …
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CONTINUE READINGUnderstanding the Energy Dominance Agenda
What does this key concept in Trump’s energy policy actually mean?
The term “energy dominance” is at the core of the Trump Administration’s energy and environmental policies. But hat does it mean? Trump fleshed out the concept of energy dominance when he proclaimed October to be “National Energy Dominance Month.” (He forgot to issue the proclamation until halfway through the month, meaning it got even less attention than it might have otherwise received. Still, it unpacks some of his thinking in a useful way. Below, I’ll try to tease out answers to some of the key questions.
CONTINUE READINGWhy do Governments Around the World Use Supply-Side Regulations to Boost Clean Transport?
New CLEE report explores the benefits these policies provide to transition off fossil fuel dependency
While the U.S. may be backsliding on requiring more fuel efficient and zero-emission vehicles, the story globally is largely the opposite. Governments around the world are still seeking to improve air quality and meet greenhouse gas goals and are increasingly moving towards supply-side regulations for their vehicle fleets. These policies include fuel economy standards, emission …
CONTINUE READINGPolicies on the Bus Go Round and Round
The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.
A year ago, the transportation manager of Northshore School District, outside of Seattle, wrote to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin pleading with him to release frozen funding she was owed for new school buses. “We need your assistance to complete these projects and lift the financial burdens school districts are facing due to the delay in …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Affirmative Case for Finding Endangerment
Despite hairsplitting by the current EPA, finding endangerment is a no-brainer.
or EPA to decide that vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions aren’t harmful is iike NASA deciding that the earth isn’t round after all. Over the next year or two, lawyers will be picking over EPA’s detailed legal arguments. Let’s not get mired in the weeds. It’s crazy that this issue is even being raised.
In 2007, the Supreme Court told EPA to do two things: (1) consider whether GHGs endanger human health and welfare, and (2) if the answer is yes, regulate vehicle emissions of GHGs. That’s exactly what EPA did. Nothing has changed in the meantime.
How California (And Other States) Can Drive Demand for Clean Trucks
CLEE and the Emmett Institute release new report today and will hold Jan. 13 webinar with Energy Commissioner Nancy Skinner keynote.
This post is co-authored by CLEE fellow Marie Grimm. California’s policies to phase out polluting diesel trucks with zero-emission models took a major hit this year from the federal government. In June 2025, Congress voted to overturn federal permission for California’s zero-emission truck mandate (although this vote is now subject to litigation). In July, Congress …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Lingering Legal Issue of California’s Limits on Vehicle Emissions
The issues are complex, but the state has some strong legal arguments on its side.
The odds are high that the Trump Administration will withdraw California’s power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks – and along with it, California’s effort to become all-electric. This is a crucial issue for the state because transportation accounts for about 40% of the state’s emissions. It’s also crucial for the other states have exercised the option of adopting California standards. The issues are complex, involving an unusual statutory scheme. Here’s what you need to know, and why I think California should win this fight.
CONTINUE READINGDoes the Law Require Cost-Benefit Analysis?
According to the D.C. Circuit, the answer is no.
Putting aside the particulars of the case, it seems wrong to apply the same standard (monetized cost-benefit analysis) to every provision in environmental law. These provisions have different language, reflecting differences in congressional priorities. Some provisions, for instance, may be designed push industry to find innovative solutions; others may reflect Congress’s value judgments or a desire to limit EPA’s discretion. We shouldn’t assume that the myriad differences in statutory language are irrelevant and that Congress wanted agencies to adopt the same method of making decisions in every case.
CONTINUE READINGSupply-Side Regulations & Clean Vehicles
As Congress votes to undermine California’s sovereignty to set supply-side standards on polluting vehicles, CLEE’s research shows why these policies are so effective
In May 2025, both the U.S. House and Senate passed resolutions to revoke California’s Clean Air Act waivers, which allow the state to enforce stricter vehicle emissions rules than federal standards (see Ann Carlson’s post on this issue). If signed by the President—and if successful in the face of court challenges to their dubious legality—these …
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CONTINUE READING“What We Do Matters:” UCLA’s Charging Ahead Symposium
States and cities have a lot of tools to cut vehicle pollution. It’s time to break them out.
Trump is a bump. A nasty one, but a bump nonetheless, because the world is on the road to zero-emission fuels and vehicles no matter what. That was one takeaway from “Charging Ahead,” the UCLA Emmett Institute’s annual symposium held on April 9 — devoted this year to cutting vehicle pollution during the next four …
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