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Witness explains Advanced Clean Cars 2, California waiver and how Vermont would implement ZEV requirements
Summary
A NESCAUM policy adviser briefed the committee on the statutory basis for states to adopt California vehicle standards, the structure of Advanced Clean Cars 2 (ACC2), compliance flexibilities for automakers, and Vermont's planned 2026 model‑year implementation.
A senior policy adviser for the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM) told the House Transportation Committee on Feb. 12 that Advanced Clean Cars 2 (ACC2) and related zero‑emission vehicle (ZEV) rules are authorized by the Clean Air Act’s carve‑out for California and section 177, which allows other states to adopt California’s standards if they are identical.
Meghan O’Toole (recorded in testimony as Megan O'Toole), senior policy adviser at NESCAUM, told members that California must secure an EPA waiver to set stricter motor‑vehicle emission standards; other states may adopt those stricter standards only by following California’s rules under section 177. That legal structure is the basis for states — including Vermont — to adopt ACC2 (which combines low‑emission vehicle standards, greenhouse‑gas standards and ZEV sales requirements) and for the multi‑state Section‑177 market that supplies ZEVs.
O’Toole said ACC2 contains three parts: criteria‑pollutant low‑emission standards for combustion engines; a greenhouse‑gas standard; and ZEV assurance measures (for example, warranty and battery‑performance protections and consumer protections for charging interoperability). She emphasized that ACC2 is primarily a supply‑side regulation that obliges automakers (OEMs) to deliver a required share of ZEVs for sale in participating states; consumers and dealers are not regulated by ACC2.
On compliance, O’Toole explained ACC2 includes multiple flexibility pathways that automakers negotiated into the rule: straight sales compliance, converted credits from ACC1, early compliance vehicle values, pooled credits across states, and proportional credits for fuel‑cell vehicles. She noted Vermont’s model‑year‑2026 implementation and said that, when accounting for all available flexibilities, an automaker’s effective ZEV sales requirement can be materially lower than the straight sales percentage listed in the headline line of the regulation.
Committee members asked for clarifications about whether ACC2 guarantees demand or merely requires supply. O’Toole said the rule creates supply certainty by obliging manufacturers to make ZEVs available for sale; complementary state policies (incentives, charging infrastructure, dealer training) are typically used to foster demand. She also described environmental justice credits and noted Section‑177 states collectively represent a significant portion of U.S. new‑vehicle registrations, increasing the number of ZEVs available to participating jurisdictions.
O’Toole reviewed national emissions context: transportation is the largest U.S. greenhouse‑gas source, and mobile sources contribute substantially to criteria pollutants that affect respiratory and cardiovascular health, particularly in overburdened communities. She said successful implementation typically involves multiple state agencies (state air program, PUC, transportation, commerce and economic development, public service) working together.
O’Toole’s visit underscored that ACC2 is primarily a regulatory framework for automakers, with implementation success depending on complementary state actions to build charging infrastructure and consumer incentives; she encouraged the legislature to consider those supporting policies in tandem with rule adoption.
