Feds Dismantle California's Clean Truck Alliance Partnership, According to FTC
Headline: Heavy-Duty Truck Manufacturers Face Antitrust and Legal Challenges in California's Clean Truck Partnership
The Clean Truck Partnership (CTP) between the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and major heavy-duty truck manufacturers aims to accelerate the adoption of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) and enforce emissions standards in California. However, this partnership has raised concerns over antitrust issues and conflicts with federal preemption.
Impact on Heavy-Duty Truck Manufacturers
The CTP includes agreements by leading manufacturers—Daimler Truck, International Motors, PACCAR, and Volvo Group, who control up to 99% of the U.S. heavy-duty truck market—to abide by CARB’s stringent emissions regulations. The amendments approved by CARB provide manufacturers flexibility in meeting ZEV credit requirements, such as credit “pooling” across states and vehicle classes, which aids manufacturers in balancing compliance.
However, these manufacturers face conflicting federal and state requirements. In mid-2025, federal legislation revoked CARB’s EPA waivers, challenging state-level emissions regulations enforcement. This has placed manufacturers in a difficult position of reconciling federal preemption with state mandates embodied in the CTP.
Antitrust Concerns
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigated whether the CTP and associated agreements among these dominant manufacturers violated antitrust laws. Key concerns included the agreement effectively mandating manufacturers to produce only zero-emission engines, thus restricting output options, potential enforcement mechanisms between competitors that could limit competition, and the limited role of political oversight and difficulty in modifying the partnership’s terms.
The FTC ultimately resolved its investigation with commitments from the manufacturers and the trade association, imposing reporting and disclosure obligations, suggesting the arrangements are now under scrutiny but not found unlawful given these conditions.
Legal and Political Challenges
The truck OEMs have filed a federal lawsuit against CARB, alleging that the CTP enforces emissions regulations preempted by federal law after Congress revoked EPA waivers for California’s programs. They argue the state is attempting to enforce banned regulations through the backdoor of the CTP agreement, which restricts their ability to legally challenge these rules.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has also sued California over the CTP, contending that the agreement illegally bypasses federal authority under the Clean Air Act. The DOJ claims CARB’s enforcement under the CTP violates federal preemption since the EPA no longer grants waivers allowing California’s stricter standards, and that the state’s use of the CTP represents an unlawful “backdoor” tactic.
Summary
While the Clean Truck Partnership supports manufacturers in transitioning to zero-emission heavy-duty trucks with some regulatory flexibility, it faces serious antitrust scrutiny and legal challenges over federal preemption. The conflict between California’s aggressive emissions policies and federal law has created significant regulatory uncertainty for truck manufacturers.
Craig Segall, a former CARB official, believes the retreat from the Clean Truck Partnership will not interrupt the long-term global trend toward zero-emission models. The administration has used the FTC to push its emissions agenda, which includes removing restrictions on emissions from various sources. In 2023, nine heavy-duty truck and engine manufacturers entered into a Clean Truck Partnership agreement with the California Air Resources Board.
The four companies (Cummins, Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis) not joining the lawsuit or being named in the FTC announcement have not yet reacted publicly. California still has tools at its disposal, such as offering incentives for companies and fleets that buy electric trucks, and excluding those that don't. On August 11, 2025, four members of the Clean Truck Partnership filed a lawsuit in federal court asking to be relieved of their obligations under the Partnership.
[1] California Air Resources Board. (2023). Clean Truck Partnership. Retrieved from https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/regulations/clean-truck-partnership
[2] California Air Resources Board. (2023). Zero-Emission Drayage Truck and Cargo Handling Equipment Regulation. Retrieved from https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/regulations/zero-emission-drayage-truck-and-cargo-handling-equipment-regulation
[3] Federal Trade Commission. (2023). FTC Closes Investigation into Clean Truck Partnership. Retrieved from https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2023/07/ftc-closes-investigation-clean-truck-partnership
[4] Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association. (2025). TEMAC Files Lawsuit Against California Air Resources Board. Retrieved from https://www.temac.org/news/temac-files-lawsuit-against-california-air-resources-board
[5] U.S. Department of Justice. (2025). U.S. Files Lawsuit Challenging California's Clean Truck Partnership. Retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-files-lawsuit-challenging-californias-clean-truck-partnership
- The antitrust investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on the Clean Truck Partnership could potentially affect the podcast discussions and newsletters surrounding the heavy-duty truck industry, as the partnership involves agreements among leading manufacturers that control up to 99% of the U.S. heavy-duty truck market.
- The legal challenges faced by heavy-duty truck manufacturers, such as those posed by the California Air Resources Board's Clean Truck Partnership and the subsequent federal lawsuit, may require closer attention in general-news and political commentary, given the significant impact these developments have on the industry and broader environmental policy.
