CARB’s Proposed In-Use Off-Road Diesel Vehicle Rule

Short-Term Critical Dates and Schedule

As the rule currently stands what are your the first critical dates?

While it is likely one ore more industry groups will take action to fight this rule, you cannot rely on something happening and have to deal with the cards as the currently lie on the table.

The first critical date in the rule is March 1, 2009. You are required to submit to CARB data on your fleet - as it exists on that date. Your fleet data on that date establishes your fleet size, compliance requirements, and due dates -- as summarized below.

Fleet Size Total Fleet HP When is
Fleet Size Determined?		 When is
Fleet Data Due to CARB?
Large 5,001 + March 1, 2009 Apr 1, 2009
Medium 2,501 – 5,000 March 1, 2009 Jun 1, 2009
Small 2,500 or less March 1, 2009 Aug 1, 2009

As indicated the rule requirements vary by fleet size. The primary differences involve your compliance dates and whether you have to comply with both PM and NOx control requirements, or just PM control.

Fleet Size First
Compliance Date		 Last
Compliance Date		 Subject to NOx
Control Requirements?		 Subject to PM
Control Requirements?
Large March 1, 2010 March 1, 2020 Yes Yes
Medium March 1, 2013 March 1, 2020 Yes Yes
Small March 1, 2015 March 1, 2025 No Yes

When do you need to get started?

We have mixed feelings about when you need to get started trying to determine how you are going to comply with this rule. On the one hand there are good arguments for getting started as soon as possible.

  1. We suspect many fleet owners do not understand what this rule is going to cost them, and if this information were more widely known, the outcry could force CARB to modify its rule. This is essentially what happened with CARB’s Portable Equipment Registration rule. It was only after that rule was adopted that the average person subject to that rule became aware of the rule requirements. That outcry resulted in CARB adopting an "emergency" rule change that deferred compliance requirements.
  2. This rule is very complex and expensive and the requirements become more restrictive over time. It could and likely will have major implications to your company. It is better to start considering these implications sooner rather than later.
  3. As we indicated the first critical rule date is March 1, 2009. There are things you may be able to do to your fleet between now and that date that could reduce or at least defer some of the impacts of this rule on your company. But putting those changes in place could take time, and given the potential cost impact of this rule, it is again better to get started sooner rather than later.

On the other hand waiting at least several months to get started has some benefits as well.

  1. We are concerned about fleet owners burning a huge amount of time to come up with an initial compliance strategy only to have the rule undergo major revision as a consequence of industry actions to ensure the rule complies with state and federal regulations and statutes. If successful those actions could result in a different rule rending that work essentially pointless.
  2. This rule is a massive cash cow for companies that manufacture PM and NOx control retrofit devices. Right now your retrofit options are highly limited and expensive, with no NOx control devices certified. All the major retrofit manufactures have products in the certification pipeline. Hence, it is likely that your cost of complying with the rule will drop over time as more products get certified.

Considering both, here are our recommendations.

  • Quick and dirty assessment: We would recommend you do a quick a dirty assessment as soon as possible to get a basic handle on where you are in relation to the rule requirements and how big a mountain you going to have to climb. This rule is insanely complicated so even doing a quick and dirty assessment will take time.
  • Full-blown compliance strategy: We would then recommend you defer working on a full-blown compliance strategy until sometime after Jan 1, 2008 but no later than March 1, 2008. Hopefully by this date some of the dust may have settled on industry actions to fight this rule and additional PM and/or NOx retrofit devices may have cleared the certification process and be available. You should have that strategy in place no later than May 1, 2007. That would then give you a minimum of 10 months to modify your fleet in preparation for the March 1, 2009 fleet size reporting date.
  • Compliance dates: If you own a Large or Medium fleet we would recommend your first compliance strategy cover at least your first two compliance dates.
    Fleet Size First Two
    Compliance Dates
    Large March 1, 2010  &  March 1, 2011
    Medium March 1, 2013  &  March 1, 2014
    Small March 1, 2015  &  March 1, 2016
    We realize that because medium fleets have four years between their initial fleet reporting date and their first compliance date, and small fleets have six years, that those plans will be subject to uncertainty and modification. However, because the fleet reporting date for all fleets is March 1, 2009 and your fleet characteristics on that date can affect your compliance costs, we think it is still important to develop a compliance strategy, even recognizing that such a strategy will change.

    We encourage you to develop a compliance strategy for the full compliance period. Obviously, the further you get into the future the less certainty there will be, and some point future plans would represent little more than educated guesses. But actions you take in the near term can affect your longer-term options and costs.

Finally, you need to brace yourself for changes. It is entirely possible you could complete a strategy and plan for a given year only to have a PM or NOx retrofit device clear the CARB certification process a day later potentially affecting your strategy. Technically under this rule you are only obligated to consider devices for a given compliance date that have been certified 10 months before that compliance date. However, if a device is certified say six months before a compliance date, and that device costs half the cost of other certified devices, you would of course want to take a hard look a that product.

The next section provides a recommended schedule for Large, Medium and Small Fleets covering critical steps up to and including your first compliance date and report.

Recommended Schedule to Meet Critical Initial Dates (last revised August 18, 2007)

Large Fleets

Perform an initial assessment of your compliance status. As soon as possible
Start assessing your compliance options in detail. No later than March 1, 2008.
Complete your compliance strategy covering your fleet reporting date and at least your first two compliance dates. No later than May 1, 2008.
While your immediate compliance need is to identify exactly what you are going to do to comply with your next compliance date, we strongly recommend that you assess all compliance years in your compliance strategy. Actions you take in the near-term can affect your longer-term options and costs.
Implement changes to your fleet (strategy) in preparation for the fleet reporting date. February 27, 2009
Submit data on your fleet as it exists on March 1, 2009 to CARB: April 1, 2009
Revise your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2010) and prepare your draft strategy for the next compliance date (March 1, 2011). May 1, 2009
Implement your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2010). February 27, 2010
Submit your first compliance report for your first compliance date to CARB. Due to CARB April 1, 2010

Medium Fleets

Perform an initial assessment of your compliance status. As soon as possible.
Start assessing your compliance options in detail. No later than March 1 ,2008.
Complete your compliance strategy covering your fleet reporting date and at least your first two compliance dates. No later than May 1, 2008.
While your immediate compliance need is to identify exactly what you are going to do to comply with your next compliance date, we strongly recommend that you assess all compliance years in your compliance strategy. Actions you take in the near-term can affect your longer-term options and costs.
Implement changes to your fleet (strategy) in preparation for the fleet reporting date (March 1, 2009). February 27, 2009
Submit data on your fleet as it exists on March 1, 2009 to CARB. June 1, 2009
Revise your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2013) and prepare your draft strategy for the next compliance date (March 1, 2014). May 1, 2012
Implement your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2013). February 27, 2013
Submit your first compliance report for your first compliance date to CARB. Due to CARB June 1, 2013

Small Fleets

Perform an initial assessment of your compliance status. As soon as possible.
Start assessing your compliance options in detail No later than March 1, 2008.
Complete your compliance strategy covering your fleet reporting date and at least your first two compliance dates. no later than May 1, 2008
While your immediate compliance need is to identify exactly what you are going to do to comply with your next compliance date, we strongly recommend that you assess all compliance years in your compliance strategy. Actions you take in the near-term can affect your longer-term options and costs.
Implement changes to your fleet (strategy) in preparation for the fleet reporting date. February 27, 2009.
Submit data on your fleet as it exists on March 1, 2009 to CARB. August 1, 2009
Revise your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2015) and prepare your draft strategy for the next compliance date (March 1, 2016). May 1, 2014
Implement your compliance strategy for your first compliance date (March 1, 2015). February 27, 2015
Submit your first compliance report for your first compliance date to CARB. Due to CARB August 1, 2015