Less idling time is good for the environment because it reduces air pollution and noise, improves fuel economy, and saves money for motor vehicle operators and consumers.
6 NYCRR Subpart 217-3 prohibits on-road heavy-duty vehicles, including non-diesel and diesel trucks and buses with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of more than 8,500 pounds (3,855.54 kg), from idling for more than five minutes at a time. The idling regulation is enforced by DEC Conservation Officers. Fines range from $500 to $18,000 in the case of a first violation.
Visit DEC's "You're the Key to Being Idle Free" webpage for additional information and resources for idling in New York State.
New York State adopted California's Advanced Clean Trucks Regulation (6 NYCRR Subpart 218-4) in December 2021. More details of New York's adoption of the ACT regulation can be found in the adoption rulemaking package (PDF).
The ACT regulation requires applicable medium- and heavy-duty vehicle (M/HDV) manufacturers to sell a percentage of their total sales in New York State as zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) starting in model year (MY) 2025 with increasing ZEV sales through MY 2035. Transit buses, motor coaches, and emergency vehicles are exempt from the ACT regulation. The ACT regulation does not require M/HDV fleets, owners, operators, or dealerships to purchase ZEVs, nor does it directly require dealerships to sell certain percentages of ZEVs or near zero-emission vehicles (NZEVs).
The ACT ZEV sales percentages for M/HDV manufacturers for New York State are as follows:
Model Year
Class 2b-3
Class 4-8
Class 7-8 Tractors
2035 and subsequent
ACT provides M/HDV manufacturers with flexibilities to comply with the ZEV sales percentages. These include:
Pending Amendments
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has proposed to revise the ACT regulation to provide additional compliance flexibilities as agreed upon with M/HD truck and engine manufacturers and their trade association through the Clean Trucks Partnership. Notably, as part of the Clean Trucks Partnership, the manufacturers have also agreed to sell as many zero-emission trucks as reasonably possible in every state that has adopted CARB’s ACT, including New York State.
DEC intends to take action to adopt the CARB amendments, so as to incorporate the additional compliance flexibilities into DEC’s ACT regulation for New York. DEC intends to commence its rulemaking process when CARB approves these amendments, expected in late 2024. CARB expects the ACT amendments to be formally adopted by the California Office of Administrative Law in early 2025.
Two primary flexibility revisions to ACT are being proposed by CARB and would ultimately be in effect in New York once DEC completes its rulemaking process:
The current regulation allows for just one model year to resolve any deficit. Under ACT, manufacturers are required to report their sales within 90 days of the end of a model year. New York’s implementation of ACT begins with model year 2025, which ends December 31, 2025. As such, the manufacturer’s first ACT sales report is due by March 31, 2026. If there is a deficit, under the current ACT regulation prior to the amendments, the manufacturer must make up the deficit in model year 2026.
With the proposed amendment to extend to a three model year make-up period, New York would not make a compliance determination under ACT for any deficit in model year 2025 until March 31, 2029. In other words, the effect of the revision would be that DEC cannot take action to enforce any violations of ACT’s model year 2025 requirements before March 31, 2029. This extended timeframe would provide medium-and heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers additional time to achieve compliance, either by selling additional ZEVs or purchasing credits from other manufacturers.
Funding Options
The Department encourages New York State based fleets to consider M/HD ZEV adoption. M/HD ZEVs are practical for many use cases and the total cost of ZEV ownership is reaching parity with internal combustion powered vehicles. New York State also offers incentives using Volkswagen Settlement funds for ZEV purchases through the following programs:
Additional sources of funding for fleets, owners, and operators of M/HDVs to purchase ZEVs or to install charging infrastructure are available through the following sources:
The second section of the ACT regulation (6 NYCRR 218-4.2) is a one-time reporting requirement for large entities that operate or dispatch on-road vehicles with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 8,500 pounds in New York State. The one-time fleet reports were due to DEC from applicable fleets by the extended deadline of December 1, 2023.
Entities required to complete and submit the report are those that:
Reporting exemptions are provided for entities that primarily operate school buses and for certain vehicles, such as transit buses operated by public transit agencies, military tactical vehicles, vehicles awaiting sale, emergency vehicles, and light-duty vehicles dispatched but not owned by transportation network companies.
Below are current versions of the reporting template and guidance documentation as of June 10, 2024. Fleet owners are required to use these documents for official fleet reporting. All applicable entities must submit their completed reporting template to DEC by emailing it to [email protected] .
Final Reporting Form (Excel) (revised June 10, 2024)
Data collected through the ACT one-time fleet reporting requirement, to date, has been made accessible through Open Data NY (last updated: July 16, 2024). This dataset will be updated periodically to account for reports that are newly submitted or corrected.
A summarized version of the ACT one-time fleet reporting dataset, which contains a subset of the Open Data NY dataset for New York State fleet locations, is available below.
Note that certain State and regional public authorities are also required to complete separate annual Part 248 reports for diesel vehicles. Information on this reporting can be found here.
The goal of the NYS Clean Diesel Grant Program (NYSCDGP) is to improve local air quality by reducing harmful diesel exhaust emissions. These harmful diesel exhaust emissions come from:
NYSCDGP has received funding through the federal Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA) since 2008. DERA funds provide opportunities and incentives to public and private entities with eligible projects. Authority for DERA grant funding comes from the Energy Policy Act of 2005. NYSCDGP projects have reduced emissions across the State, including Disadvantaged Communities (DACs) and Potential Environmental Justice Area (PEJA) neighborhoods. DEC continues to work on DERA-funded projects to assist in meeting the State's air quality goals. A detailed summary of these projects is available as a downloadable PDF.
DEC partnered with New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) on two truck replacement projects to reduce diesel exhaust emissions. Older, dirtier, heavy duty trucks were replaced with newer, cleaner, heavy duty trucks certified to more stringent emission standards.
DEC partnered with NYSERDA to reduce diesel emissions from school buses transporting children in the State. Funds were made available to school districts across the State for their choice of one of these projects:
DEC worked with regional transportation authorities to install diesel particulate filters in transit buses operating across upstate New York. DERA funds, sourced by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 (PDF), were made available by the NYSCDGP to three transit authorities:
The funds were used to invest in the installation of diesel exhaust reduction technologies in transit buses. Retrofitting buses with diesel particulate filters reduced emissions from transit buses that often operate in potential Environmental Justice neighborhoods and other areas which received a disproportionate amount of diesel exhaust.
Regulated entities and prime contractors:
Please send completed forms to [email protected] . Prime contractors should send their reports to their associated regulated entity, who will in turn provide it to DEC.
Entities seeking information on the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) One-Time Fleet Reporting requirements (6 NYCRR 218-4.2) instead of Part 248 annual reporting can find these requirements above.
The annual reporting period for 6 NYCRR Part 248 is from October 1 to September 30. Calendar Year 2024 reporting should reflect the period of October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024. All Annual Report and Vehicle Inventory forms must be received by November 1, 2024.
Entities required to submit annual Part 248 reports include:
Regulated entities and prime contractors must report all their on- and off-road heavy-duty diesel-powered vehicles (HDDVs) (including those exempt from best available retrofit technology (BART) requirements) on both the Annual Report and Vehicle Inventory forms. Prime contractors working for State agencies or public authorities should report to those agencies only those HDDVs operated on behalf of the State during the subject reporting period (including HDDVs exempt from BART requirements) on both the Annual Report and Vehicle Inventory forms. For the proposes of the Part 248, HDDVs are on- and off-road diesel-powered vehicles with a GVWR of more than 8,500 pounds.
The "Total Quantity (Gallons) of ULSD Fuel Used in Past Year" row of the Annual Report form should represent the total quantity of ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) for a State agency or public authority's fleet, both light-duty and heavy duty. Prime contractors only need to report the quantity of ULSD used while performing work on behalf of State agencies or public authorities during the reporting period.
On-road HDDVs operated less than 1,000 miles per year and off-road HDDVs operated less than 100 hours per year may be eligible for a BART low usage waiver. Low usage HDDVs are often used for short periods of time that may not allow engine exhaust temperatures to reach levels that allow the retrofit technologies to operate effectively. Examples of low usage HDDVs include trucks used for road construction signage, water storage, and other HDDVs that stay motionless at a job site for long periods of time. The BART low usage waiver is based, in part, on the California Air Resources Board's Truck and Bus Regulation Low-Use Vehicle Exemption.
Regulated entities (State agencies and authorities) and prime contractors may submit an Application for Waiver of BART (PDF) based on low usage. If HDDVs meet the low usage criteria, there is no need to check the compatibility of the engine with the EPA or CARB for an acceptable emission control device.
A BART waiver based on low usage must be requested every year and include odometer and hour meter documentation from the beginning of a specific one-year reporting period. State agencies and authorities must submit a DMV inspection report or a State vehicle fleet maintenance record that includes miles/hours documentation with a low usage waiver request. Prime contractors must attach a DMV inspection report or third-party maintenance record that includes mileage/hours documentation for each low usage waiver request. If an on-road vehicle's odometer or an off-road vehicle's hours meter is not functioning, the HDDV is not eligible for a BART waiver based on low usage.
As of January 1, 2020, all on-road and off-road HDDVs operated by regulated entities must be Part 248 compliant. Low usage waivers should be applied for as soon as possible to avoid non-compliant HDDVs operating on behalf of the State in violation of Part 248 regulations. If approved, the low usage waiver becomes effective on the date the waiver is approved and expires one year from that date. For example, a low usage waiver with an approval date of January 15, 2024, expires one year later on January 15, 2025.
Regulated entities seeking a low usage BART waiver are limited to HDDVs that operate less than 1,000 miles for on-road HDDVs and 100 hours for off-road HDDVs per year, even if a portion of the annual operational usage is outside of the State or if the vehicle is only operating on behalf of the State part of the time. Additionally, the 1,000 mile for on-road HDDVs and 100 hour for off-road HDDVs limitations includes miles driven or operated between and at work locations. If an HDDV that has received an approved BART waiver based on low usage goes beyond the low use mileage/hour limit threshold during the one-year waiver period, the BART waiver based on low usage in no longer valid and the HDDV must be brought into immediate Part 248 compliance.