S. 3135 — Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act of 2026

This section finds that diesel vehicles are vital for transportation and emergency services in cold weather regions, that diesel exhaust fluid storage and supply are frequently unreliable in prolonged freezing conditions, that automatic engine shutdowns due to emissions control malfunctions pose life-threatening risks, and that Clean Air Act emissions safeguards were never intended to jeopardize human safety.

This section defines the Administrator as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. It also defines a covered manufacturer as the manufacturer of a covered vehicle or engine under the Clean Air Act and a covered vehicle as an on-highway diesel vehicle or nonroad diesel equipment.

This section directs the Administrator to revise Clean Air Act regulations within 180 days to authorize covered manufacturers to suspend inducement-related engine derate or shutdown functions triggered by emissions control faults in covered vehicles when ambient temperatures are at or below zero degrees Centigrade, provided the engine returns to normal operation above that threshold and continued performance is necessary to prevent occupational danger, equipment failure, or loss of essential transportation in remote areas. It also grants a year-round exemption from diesel exhaust fluid system requirements, including any associated derate or shutdown functions, for covered vehicles primarily operated north of 59 degrees north latitude or encountering prolonged ambient temperatures below the freezing point of diesel exhaust fluid.

This section limits any waiver of Clean Air Act emissions standards under the Act to the temporary cold-weather operational mode authorized under section 4(a) and the exemption from diesel exhaust fluid system requirements under section 4(b).