Direct the Public Utilities Commission and/or Air Resources Board to create a “Clean Miles Standard” for freight

The California Legislature could direct the Public Utilities Commission or Air Resources Board to create a Clean Miles Standard for freight, which would require shippers to meet a certain percentage of the miles their goods travel via clean technologies, like heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles.

Create a statewide Indirect Source
Rule under the Clean Air Act

The California Air Resources Board could create a statewide Indirect Source Rule under the Clean Air Act, which would regulate facilities like ports and warehouses that generate pollution indirectly by attracting mobile sources of emissions like trucks, requiring emission reductions from that vehicle traffic.

Initiate new regulations under the Clean Air Act to drive zero-emission truck adoption

The California Air Resources Board could initiate new regulations under the Clean Air Act to drive zero-emission truck adoption by setting emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles that help transition the trucking industry to zero-emissions over time.

Create government procurement regulations

The California Governor’s Office and Department of General Services could create government procurement regulations requiring purchase or lease of zero-emission trucks and direct the Department of General Services to implement and oversee them, which would increase demand for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles overall.

Help facilitate aggregation of shipper demand

The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development could help facilitate aggregation of shipper demand by coordinating various efforts and groups to enhance collective truck purchasing power and aggregating shipper demand for zero-emission freight initiatives to reduce supply chain and vehicle costs.

Support large-scale infrastructure deployment along priority corridors by identifying new “ZEV Ready Zones”

The Governor’s Office and state agencies could support large-scale infrastructure deployment by identifying priority corridors to direct zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and related deployment, expanding the existing “ZEV Ready Zones” that are equipped with the necessary infrastructure, policies, and planning to facilitate the transition.

Create long-term, consistent, flexible, and stackable incentives for truck purchases

The California Legislature could create long-term, consistent, flexible, and stackable incentives for zero-emission truck purchases to reduce investment risk and uncertainty about incentives.

Facilitate coordination of incentives

The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development could facilitate coordination of incentives by periodically convening administering entities such as ports, utilities, and agencies, or organizing in-depth sessions aimed at streamlining, restructuring, and coordinating across the various entities and incentives.

Create revenue neutral, self-funding incentives programs for heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles

The California Legislature could create revenue neutral, self-funding incentive programs for heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles, in which fees on non-zero-emission vehicles fund rebates for zero-emission vehicles.

Create tax credits for heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles

The California Legislature could create tax credits for heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles to help offset the purchasing cost of a new zero-emission heavy-duty vehicle.

Exempt heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles
from the state sales tax or ensure they are taxed no more than their diesel
counterparts

The California Legislature could exempt heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles from the state sales tax or ensure they are taxed no more than their diesel counterparts to bolster the early adoption of heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles and enhance market competitiveness.

Equalize registration fees

The California Legislature and Department of Motor Vehicles could equalize registration fees to ensure that zero-emission trucks do not pay more for registration than diesel trucks, based on their purchase price and vehicle weight, among other factors.

Exempt medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles
from the federal excise tax and reinstate tax credits

Federal leaders could exempt medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles from the federal excise tax and reinstate tax credits to reduce costs, such as by maintaining and re-authorizing sections 45X (the Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit) and 45W (the Clean Commercial Vehicle Credit) in the federal tax code.

Create incentive programs for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles

Ports could create incentive programs for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, such as by providing green lanes, preferential reservation, or reduced fees for zero-emission vehicles.

Could continue to help improve energization timelines

The California Public Utilities Commission could continue to help improve energization timelines for charging infrastructure and address fueling constraints to help lower total cost of ownership for fleets.

Modify the Low Carbon Fuel Standard in future years to increase support for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles

The California Legislature and Air Resources Board could modify the Low Carbon Fuel Standard in future years to increase support for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles by shifting a greater share of credit value under the program from biofuels towards electrification, including vehicle charging infrastructure.

Continue integrated planning and policy initiatives that support proactive grid planning

The California Public Utilities Commission and Energy Commission could continue integrated planning and policy initiatives that support and enable proactive grid planning, particularly in anticipation of load growth amid accelerated electrification.

Adapt the Trade Corridor Enhancement Program to better align with the needs of charging infrastructure projects

The California Legislature and Transportation Commission could adapt the existing Trade Corridor Enhancement Program to better align with the needs of zero-emission vehicle infrastructure development projects, including charging stations.

Speed up deployment of distributed energy resources to enhance charging infrastructure through streamlined permitting and regulatory clarity

The California Legislature and Public Utilities Commission could speed deployment of distributed energy resources that enhance charging infrastructure by streamlining permitting and increasing regulatory clarity.

Adopt Rule 29 procedures to support EV charging infrastructure deployment

California municipal utility leaders could adopt Rule 29 procedures to support electric vehicle charging infrastructure deployment, which could accelerate needed deployment in the service territories of utilities like the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Extend demand-charge “holidays” and create a customer rate class for heavy-duty customers

The California Legislature, Public Utilities Commission, and electric utilities could extend demand-charge “holidays” or offer other mitigation options and create a customer rate class for heavy-duty customers, waiving or reducing demand charges for charging stations and giving fleets and heavy-duty charging depot operators the opportunity to deploy zero-emission trucks and experiment with charging strategies to reduce risks.

Take specific programs and costs out of electricity rates to lower them

The California Legislature could take specific programs and costs out of electricity rates to lower them—i.e., by excluding wildfire costs—and make heavy-duty zero-emission vehicle charging much more affordable to achieve cost parity quicker.

Create electricity tax breaks for medium- and heavy-duty meters

The California Legislature could create electricity tax breaks for medium- and heavy-duty charging station meters to further reduce fueling costs.

Extend the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit

Congress could extend the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit (section 30C of the tax code), which provides incentives for installing qualified alternative fuel vehicle refueling infrastructure, including electricity or hydrogen charging ports.

Address mis- and disinformation through trusted messengers

Industry leaders and advocates could address mis- and disinformation through trusted messengers who share success stories with fleets, shippers, and policymakers.

Address the politicization of zero-emission trucks by focusing on the co-benefits of deployment

Industry leaders and advocates could address the politicization of zero-emission trucks by focusing on the co-benefits of deployment, including improved global competitiveness, supply chain resilience through diversity of options for product shipping, more sustainable economic growth, and increased consumer choice and personal freedom.

Enable peer-to-peer learning

The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, the California Air Resources Board, and industry leaders (particularly fleet owners) could enable peer-to-peer learning by convening industry representatives and emphasizing opportunities for improved cost and increased demand, as well as highlighting specific use cases.