Trucking news and briefs for Friday, Feb. 20, 2026:
Environmental, health groups sue EPA over Endangerment Finding repeal
A coalition of health and environmental advocacy organizations filed a lawsuit Wednesday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent decision to rescind the 2009 Endangerment Finding and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions regulations.
That 2009 finding allowed the EPA to regulate six greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride). In announcing the finalization of the rule, EPA said it considered and reevaluated the legal foundation of the Endangerment Finding and the text of the Clean Air Act (CAA) in light of recent Supreme Court decisions, which EPA said “have significantly clarified the scope of EPA’s authority under the CAA and made clear that the interpretive moves the Endangerment Finding used to launch an unprecedented course of regulation were unlawful.”
In the lawsuit filed this week, more than a dozen organizations petitioned the appellate court to review the rescission. The EPA itself and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin are named defendants in the lawsuit.
[Related: Trump, EPA make good on promise to toss emissions regs]
Sierra Club, one of the organizations that filed the lawsuit, said that “under the Clean Air Act, the EPA is legally required to limit vehicle emissions of any ‘air pollutant’ that the agency determines ‘cause or contribute to air pollution that may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.’”
The group pointed to a 2007 Supreme Court decision in Massachusetts v. EPA that held that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases “air pollutants” under the Clean Air Act. That decision led to the 2009 Endangerment Finding.
“In its repeal, the Trump EPA is rehashing legal arguments that the Supreme Court already considered and rejected in Massachusetts v. EPA,” Sierra Club added.
The group went on to call the rescission a “reckless decision” that “will have disastrous consequences for the American people, our health, and our shared future,” said Joanne Spalding, Director of the Sierra Club's Environmental Law Program. “In the early 2000s, the Sierra Club brought the first-ever lawsuit seeking federal greenhouse gas standards under the Clean Air Act, and as a result, these protections became a reality.”
Spalding added that it’s filing the lawsuit “because people should not be forced to suffer for this administration's blind allegiance to the fossil fuel industry and corporate polluters. This shortsighted rollback is blatantly unlawful and their efforts to force this upon the American people will fail.”
[Related: ATA asks EPA to revisit its looming NOx rule as OEMs eye 2027 engine launch]
Fleet Advantage launches new program to help private fleets with looming truck price hikes
Fleet Advantage, a provider of fleet data analytics and equipment financing, has launched a new program designed to help private fleets plan for increased equipment acquisition costs in 2027.
Those costs are expected from the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2027 Heavy-Duty NOx rule, uncertainty around tariff-related truck costs and more.
The company’s new Capital Cost Avoidance Program provides a data-driven roadmap to help fleets "pull forward" their procurement to the "comfortable landing zones" of 2026, Fleet Advantage said.
The program includes several key components:
- Consultative data audit: Fleet Advantage experts conduct a deep dive into a fleet’s unique data and operational needs to identify exactly how the 2027 mandates will impact their bottom line.
- Customized procurement calculator: Using the audit findings, a specialized calculator generates the financial impact of maintaining a traditional cycle versus a strategic "pull-forward" strategy.
- Consultative cost avoidance plan: Based on the audit and financial modeling, Fleet Advantage provides a comprehensive roadmap featuring complete recommendations for a multi-year pull-ahead plan. The blueprint outlines the optimal timing and volume for asset replacement to maximize capital efficiency and mitigate market volatility.
- Secure build slots: For any organizations that participate in Fleet Advantage’s program, they gain access to secured build slots, ensuring availability before the 2026 market reaches full capacity.
- Exclusive financial incentives: Participants in the program will also realize additional benefits that further mitigate the impact of current economic shifts. Fleet Advantage will also offer specialty finance options, including a limited-time incentive where the company will pay 50% of a fleet’s tariff costs for those who sign up now.
"Most companies realize the 2027 challenges are coming, but many don't yet have a concrete strategy to deal with them," said Brian Antonellis, CTP, Senior Vice President of Fleet Operations at Fleet Advantage. "For a fleet of 1,000 trucks on a five-year lifecycle, the average $10,000-per-unit increase represents a $10 million hit to capital budgets. Our program moves beyond guesswork, taking a fleet's actual data to answer the critical question: 'How much will it cost me to avoid 2027?’ In fact, we are already seeing the most forward-thinking organizations take decisive action, with many clients pulling forward as much as 50% of their total fleet size and placing orders now to lock in savings and availability."
