Pennsylvania bill would incentivize purchase of near-zero-emission large trucks

New legislation at the Pennsylvania statehouse is intended to incentivize purchases of near-zero-emission large trucks.

Sen. Rosemary Brown, R-Monroe, introduced a bill last week that would create a Near-Zero-Emission Truck Incentive Program.

The grant program would be administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. The state Department of Environmental Protection would work in consultation with the highway department to reduce emission from large trucks.

Brown wrote in a memo to state senators that “the federal government took steps to tightly regulate heavy-duty truck emissions between model years 2007 and 2010 by requiring the standardization of selective catalytic reduction and diesel particulate filters.” She added that trucks sold in 2006 emit about 10 times the amount of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter as trucks sold today.

Brown told lawmakers that about 34% of trucks registered in Pennsylvania are pre-2010 model trucks.

“These trucks contribute the majority of emissions from the trucking industry in the state,” she wrote. “The proposed grant program will lead to the replacement of these trucks with newer, much cleaner trucks, resulting in lower emissions from the trucking industry and cleaner air for all.”

Additionally, she said the addition of multiple standard safety technologies by original equipment manufacturers in post-2010 model trucks will save lives in Pennsylvania.

Grant program

Her bill, SB1348, would require the state DOT and Department of Environmental Protection to apply for federal funds available for the purpose of reducing pollution.

The state would use the funds to create a grant program to incentivize the purchase of model year 2010 or newer trucks to be titled and registered in Pennsylvania, if accompanied by a trade-in of a pre-2010 diesel truck that is also titled and registered in the state.

“No other single technology transfer can affect Pennsylvania’s air quality and provide immediate health benefits as much as replacing pre-2010 trucks with post-2010 models,” Brown wrote.

The Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association supports the bill.

Rebecca Oyler, PMTA president, said the federal excise tax acts as a disincentive to companies wishing to update their equipment to the latest technology.

“Providing an incentive program at the state level helps offset this impediment and avoids costly mandates that would cripple the trucking industry,” Oyler said in prepared remarks.

SB1348 is in the Senate Transportation Committee. LL

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