Rep. Steel Leads CA Delegation Opposing High-Burden State Carbon Emissions Regulation For Maritime Industry

With California’s ports dependent on the multibillion-dollar industry to move nearly 665 million tons of domestic cargo yearly, Steel says CARB regulations already burden our supply chain and would only magnify the problem.

Rep. Michelle Steel (R-CA) is leading a contingent of California’s Congressional Delegation in March urging the state to delay implementing a new carbon emissions rule for marine vessels set to take effect next year over economic strain concerns in the maritime industry, 

Steel, who is up for reelection in November for representing California’s 45th district, penned a letter to California Gov. Gavin Newsom to immediately halt the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Commercial Harbor Craft rule, which will require certain vessel types to have zero-emission options and cleaner combustion engines. 

“Moving forward with this rule and requiring towing vessels to undergo substantial retrofitting by the beginning of 2025 threatens mariner safety, property loss, and the environment surrounding

California’s heavily trafficked ports,” Steel wrote, adding that over 50,000 jobs in the tugboat, towboat, and barge industry could be impacted. 

Steel, along with Reps. John Duarte (CA-13), Ken Calvert (CA-41), Jay Obernolte (CA-23), and Young Kim (CA-39), specifically oppose requiring towing vessels operating in the state to install diesel particulate filters.

The lawmakers say the filters have been linked to dangerous fires in diesel engine trucks that cost each vessel owner approximately $5 million in compliance fees. 

And with California’s ports dependent on the multibillion-dollar industry to move nearly 665 million tons of domestic cargo yearly, Steel says CARB regulations already burden our supply chain and would only magnify the problem.

“CARB’s continued disregard for key stakeholder input requires swift action before the eagerness of some to fulfill a regulatory agenda risks Californians’ safety and economic well-being,” the lawmaker wrote.

Steel, who has taken a strong stance on fiscally conservative positions, joins a growing movement calling on state leaders, including U.S. Coast Guard officials and business organizations, to oppose CARB's requirement. 

Rear Admiral Andrew M. Sugimoto, who commands the U.S. Coast Guard’s Eleventh District, which spans from the California-Oregon border to Peru, reportedly told CARB officials that the maritime military service branch “may not necessarily” accept the rule for instillation and inspection of commercial vessels.

“Coast Guard inspectors will not perform emissions tests on vessels operating in U.S. waters to evaluate DPF system performance. Therefore, please note that the Coast Guard will not enforce California’s CHC regulation,” he added.

American Waterway Operators also reportedly opposed the rule, urging CARB to reconsider the “ill-advised position” for legal and industry protection reasons.

“Our industry safely and efficiently moves over 665 million tons of cargo each year while emitting 43 percent less greenhouse gasses than rail and 832 percent less than trucks,” wrote AWO president and CEO Jennifer Carpenter to Gov. Newsom. “CARB has made it clear that it intends to continue to enforce the CHC rule deadlines without EPA authorization.”