Vermont officials outline how California-based clean-vehicle rules will take effect in model year 2026

Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources told a joint hearing of the Senate Transportation and Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committees on Feb. 6 that rules based on California standards'including Advanced Clean Cars 2 (ACC 2) and Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT)'are on the books and begin affecting the market in model year 2026.

Jane Zorczak, director of the Climate Action Office in the Agency of Natural Resources, said the rules are part of Vermont's strategy to meet greenhouse-gas targets in the Global Warming Solutions Act. "These rules are critical for the state of Vermont in meeting our climate goals," Zorczak said, adding the agency could not meet its statutory targets without measures like ACC 2 and ACT.

The presentation explained two linked regulatory approaches. Rachel Stevens, an attorney in the agency's Office of General Counsel, described the combined structure as emissions-control standards for internal-combustion engines (low-emission vehicle or LEV elements) plus a zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales requirement that obliges manufacturers to deliver an increasing share of plug-in vehicles and other zero-emission models to Vermont.

The ACC 2 delivery requirement, the agency said, ramps to 35% by model year 2026 and is built to reach 100% of new light-duty deliveries by 2035. The ACT program covers medium- and heavy-duty vehicles…