Trump transportation secretary repeals GHG emissions measurement rule

The Trump administration is delivering on its promise to repeal Biden-era emissions regulations. 

The latest update took place April 18, with the Department of Transportation’s announcement of an overturned greenhouse gas emission rule that “would have required state transportation departments to measure and establish declining targets for carbon dioxide emissions on federally supported highways,” according to a DOT press release.

This action effectively removes a 2023 federal requirement and leaves the decision to individual states. While the final rule was established during President Joe Biden’s term, its history dates back to the Obama era.

The rule was part of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and the FAST Act, which was finalized before President Donald Trump’s first term began in January 2017. The first Trump Administration repealed the rule, and the Biden Administration reestablished it in 2023. Though reestablished, the rule never took effect, as 22 states filed a lawsuit against it.

Had the rule remained in effect, it would have required State DOTs and metropolitan planning organizations to report on their progress toward achieving self-established CO2 reduction targets.

See also: How Sean Duffy’s DOT is already reshaping trucking

The purpose of the repeal during Trump’s first administration was three-fold: to reconsider the underlying legal authority; the cost of the measure compared to its “lack of demonstrated benefits’; and the potential for duplicated information required by government and metropolitan entities with other GHG emissions rules.

Duffy also believes the repeal will provide more funds to revitalize highways and help streamline regulations within the Federal Highway Administration.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are going to build great, big, beautiful things again,” Duffy said in a statement. “I slashed this ridiculous climate requirement to ensure no radical political agenda gets in the way of revitalizing America’s highways.”

According to the administration, “repealing this measure would have the qualitative benefit of streamlining FHWA regulations by removing regulations,” and it also provides “regulatory certainty to state DOTs,” noted in the Federal Register.

However, the Federal Register states that the funds “saved” from this rule’s repeal cannot be quantified, as it never took effect.

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Responses to repeal have been positive from the American Trucking Associations as well as other entities.

“States are best equipped to determine their transportation needs, but FHWA’s GHG emissions performance measures issued by the Biden Administration would have created unnecessary bureaucratic barriers to access federal funds,” Dan Horvath, ATA SVP of regulatory affairs and safety policy, said. “Ultimately, this heavy-handed approach would have scrambled local priorities and undermined highway expansion projects, leading to greater traffic congestion and higher shipping costs that contribute to inflation. The trucking industry strongly supports the Trump Administration’s decision to repeal this rule that lacked statutory authority.”