Recent Federal Actions
This list includes recent federal actions, such as Federal Register notices and rulemaking actions, agency directives or agency communications, that are all publicly available. These actions relate to alternative fuels and vehicles, fuel blends, hybrid vehicles, and idle reduction and fuel economy measures. When rulemakings are finalized, they will move to the list of Federal Laws and Incentives.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published a memorandum containing updates to the NEVI Program guidance on December 11, 2024. The updated guidance provides information regarding fully built out criteria and flexibility after build out certification.
For more information, see the FHWA NEVI website.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) updated the Q&A website in December 2024. The updated frequently asked questions relate to general questions, medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicle charging, J3400 connectors and adaptors, EVC-RAA, and fully built-out certification. For more information, see the FHWA NEVI website.
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance for the SAF tax credit created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169). The guidance instructs taxpayers using Argonne National Laboratory’s Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies (R&D GREET) model to use the October 2024 version of the 40BSAF-GREET 2024 model and accompanying user manual. For more information, see the IRS news release.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) updated the Q&A website in September 2024. The updated frequently asked questions relate to general questions, technical requirements, eligible expenditures, right-of-way EV chargers, contract administration and procurement, and fully built-out certification. For more information, see the FHWA NEVI website.
The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) has issued proposed rulemaking to amend the accessibility guidelines for buildings and facilities covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to address the accessibility of EV charging stations. The proposed rulemaking provides guidance on applicability of the proposed guidelines, scoping requirements, technical requirements, and “use last” alternatives for EV chargers.
The proposed rulemaking builds off the Access Board Design Recommendations for Accessible EV chargers technical assistance document. For more information, see the Access Board press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on August 7, 2024. On August 27, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from August 30 through September 15, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on July 18, 2024. On August 7, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from August 9 through August 29, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) updated the frequently asked questions Fact Sheet for Clean Vehicle Credits in July 2024. The new guidance is related to the critical mineral and battery component requirements of the New, Previously Owned, and Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicle Credits.
This action is the result of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169), which amended the Qualified Plug-in Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit (IRC 30D), now known as the Clean Vehicle Credit. For more information, see the IRS Clean Vehicle Tax Credits website.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) updated the frequently asked questions Fact Sheet for the New and Previously Owned Vehicle Credits (30D credit) created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in July 2024. The notice provides guidance on the registration requirements to claim the New and Previously Owned Vehicle Credits.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on June 26, 2024. On July 18, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from July 20 through August 8, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) updated the frequently asked questions Fact Sheet for the Clean Fuel Production Credit (45Z credit) created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in July 2024. The notice provides guidance on the registration requirements to claim the Clean Fuel Production Credit.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on June 6, 2024. On June 26, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from June 30 through July 29, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published a memorandum containing updates to the NEVI Program guidance that was first issued on February 10, 2022. The updated guidance provides information regarding plans and priorities for the time period after corridors are deemed fully built out and requests that states demonstrate progress in implementing their previously approved plans. FHWA also published an updated State Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan template.
For more information, see the FHWA NEVI website.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a final rule issuing new corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for light-duty vehicles beginning with Model Year (MY) 2027 and new fuel efficiency standards for heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans beginning with MY 2030. CAFE standards will increase 2% per year for MY 2027 to 2031 for passenger cars and 2% per year for MY 2029 to 2031 for light-duty trucks. Heavy-duty pickup truck and van fuel efficiency will increase 10% per year for MY 2030 to 2032 and 8% per year for MY 2033 to 2035.
For more information, see the NHSTA press release and NHTSA CAFE website.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance for the New and Previously Owned Clean Vehicle Credits (30D) created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in June 2024. The new guidance updates procedures for qualified manufacturers and sellers to submit information related to the New and Previously Owned Clean Vehicle Credits.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on May 17, 2024. On June 6, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from June 10 through June 29, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance for the Clean Fuel Production Credit (45Z credit) created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in May 2024. The notice provides guidance on the registration requirements to claim the Clean Fuel Production Credit.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. This is an extension of the previous waiver issued on April 19, 2024. On May 17, 2024, EPA extended the E15 waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from May 21 through June 9, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published final regulations for the New and Previously Owned Clean Vehicle Credits in May 2024. The regulations provide rules relating to the transfer of credits, compliance in the absence of a correct vehicle identification number, and foreign entities of concern. Additionally, the IRS published an updated fact sheet providing guidance on eligibility for the New, Previously Owned, and Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicle Credits in April 2024.
This action is the result of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169), which amended the Qualified Plug-in Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit (IRC 30D), now known as the Clean Vehicle Credit. For more information, see the IRS Clean Vehicle Tax Credits website and press release.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance for the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Credit (48C) created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in April 2024. The new guidance clarifies the procedures for the allocation of credits and announces the 2024 allocation round of the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol (E15) to be sold during the summer season. E15 is granted a waiver to exceed the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements for gasoline that are detailed in the Clean Air Act Section 211(h)(1) by 1 pound per square inch (psi) from May 1 through May 20, 2024. The waiver only extends to areas within the contiguous United States where the 1-psi waiver currently applies to gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). For more information, see the EPA 2024 Nationwide Fuel Waivers website.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance for the Clean Hydrogen Production Credit created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-58) in April 2024. The new guidance is related to the provisional emissions rate petition process for applicants that request an emissions value from the U.S. Department of Energy.
For more information, see the IRS press release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule for GHG Emissions Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles – Phase 3 in March 2024. Beginning with model year 2027, the final rule establishes stronger GHG emissions reduction standards for heavy-duty vocational vehicles, including delivery trucks, refuse trucks, transit buses, shuttle buses, school buses.
For more information, see the EPA Final Rule: GHG Emissions Standards for HD Vehicles – Phase 3 website.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established new standards for battery durability and warranty requirements for light-duty (LD) and medium-duty (MD) battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in electric vehicles (PHEVs). High-voltage batteries and associated electric powertrain components are now classified as specified major emission control components under Section 207(i)(2) of the Clean Air Act. This designation establishes a warranty period of 8 years or 80,000 miles, whichever occurs first, for these components in LD and MD BEVs and PHEVs. The program will provide warranty coverage for the emission control components on Class 2b and Class 3 BEVs and PHEVs equal to that for the same components on LD BEVs and PHEVs.
For more information, see the EPA Final Rule: Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles website.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule for Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty (LD) and Medium-Duty (MD) Vehicles in March 2024. The final rule establishes updated emissions standards for greenhouse gases (GHGs) and criteria pollutants for LD and MD vehicles that will phase in over Model Years 2027 through 2032. Additionally, EPA revised GHG program provisions which include upstream emissions associated with zero-emission vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in compliance calculations, MD vehicle incentive multipliers, fueling emissions from incomplete MD vehicles, battery durability and warranty requirements for LD and MD electric vehicles, and updated program requirements related to aftermarket fuel conversions.
For more information, see the EPA Final Rule: Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles website.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a final rule for Petroleum-Equivalent Fuel Economy Calculations in March 2024. The final rule revises the value for the petroleum-equivalency factor and procedures for calculating a value for the petroleum-equivalent fuel economy of electric vehicles (EVs). For more information, see the DOE Petroleum-Equivalent Fuel Economy Calculation website.