Morgan Griffith Blasts California For 'Imposing Its Preference On The Rest Of The Country' Through Air Rules

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During debate on the House floor, Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA) spoke in support of a resolution to block EPA utilization of California clean air regulations.

Transcript

00:00Madam Speaker, today I rise in support of HJ Res 87, a resolution providing for congressional

00:06disapproval under Chapter 8 of Title 5, United States Code of the Rule Submitted by the

00:11Environmental Protection Agency relating to California State Motor Vehicle and Engine

00:17Pollution Control Standards, California Heavy Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty

00:22and Maintenance Provisions, California Advanced Clean Trucks, Zero Emission Airport Shuttles,

00:29Zero Emission Powertrain Certification and Waiver of Preemption Notice of Decision, sponsored

00:35by my friend from the great manufacturing state of Michigan.

00:41In general, what makes these California rules have such an outsized impact on the rest of

00:46the country is that under Section 177 of the Clean Air Act, other states can opt in to the

00:53California standard.

00:55So not only does California dominate because of its sheer size, but when a handful of other

01:01states opt in, the California standard becomes the de facto national standard for the United

01:09States.

01:10It's my understanding on just this California EPA waiver for trucks, 10 states, Colorado,

01:17Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and

01:21California have opted in to this regulation.

01:25This is concerning to me because it seems that California is being given super state, super

01:33state status vis-a-vis the other states of the Union.

01:38States can opt in to a proposal of the privileged state or the super state, but are not able to

01:44request a preemption or a waiver from the federal government on their own.

01:50This is either the national standard or the California standard.

01:55There are the only two you can have.

01:57It does not allow for individual states to become the laboratories of innovation and democracy,

02:02as was seen fit and as it was believed to be the case for our federal system.

02:09I believe, Madam Speaker, that the states should be equal.

02:13I am not so sure that we need a super state imposing its preference on the rest of the

02:21country.

02:22If that's what we want, why not cede all authority to California and disband the United States Congress?

02:31Either way, having parallel state vehicle regulatory systems is what really causes manufacturers and

02:38big fleet operators to be concerned.

02:41Now, specifically on this California advanced clean truck rule, this rule creates a complex

02:47credit trading system where truck manufacturers must buy or generate zero emission truck credits

02:52just to have the privilege of doing business in the state.

02:57At the end of the day, this rule is very restrictive on traditional diesel powered trucks.

03:05By 2035, this rule ends up requiring electric big rigs to make up 40% of the class sales.

03:15Now, I'm not here to tell you that electric trucks don't have their place.

03:17We all know they do.

03:19Yard trucks in particular might be an application where electric trucks have an advantage.

03:22Perhaps in certain city delivery situations, those delivery routes could be done with electric

03:26vehicles.

03:27That should be a business decision, not the decision of a waiver granted by bureaucrats from Washington

03:36to a super state to dictate to the rest of the country what our policies should be.

03:42Unfortunately for the independent owner-operators and small trucking companies, this mandate

03:46for electric trucks comes with a very expensive price tag.

03:52A new diesel big rig costs about $180,000.

03:55Electric big rigs can go anywhere from $200,000 to $400,000.

04:01That price tag is going to hit the independent driver, the small owner-operators and the small

04:06fleets hard.

04:07Trucking is a relatively small margin business where time on the road equals money.

04:13I'm afraid that all of these increased costs could lead to more consolidation in the industry

04:19and less competition.

04:21Further these higher rig costs will present a bigger barrier to entry for the owner-operators

04:28and small trucking companies who with current technology would have more charging down time

04:38and accordingly not only are you not able to be on the road but when you're off-road you're

04:44off for a longer period of time and time on the road as I said earlier equals money.

04:48Therefore, it's going to cost more to operate.

04:51Now the big companies might be fine with that but your smaller companies are going to find

04:55it very, very difficult.

04:57This regulation throws a wet blanket on truckers' opportunities to share in the American dream

05:02of starting their own business, starting out with one truck and building it to five and

05:06then maybe getting to ten.

05:07It gives all the power to the big companies.

05:10I believe that this electric truck mandate is going to lead to inefficiency and increased

05:15costs on all products that have to be transported over road.

05:19So I urge all members to join me in voting in favor of House Joint Resolution 87 and ending

05:26this regulatory nightmare.

05:30Thank you, Madam Speaker.

05:31I reserve.

05:32The gentleman from New Jersey is recognized.

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