California fleets that have had to fork over funds to buy new cleaner-burning trucks or retrofit with diesel particulate filters may well have a leg up over the rest of the country under the Environmental Protection Agency's upcoming rules.

That's according to my colleague Chris Brown, executive editor of HDT sister publication Business Fleet.

In a recent blog post, Brown points out that the federal government is tightening the Clean Air Act, and the new standards will catch in its net many more jurisdictions around the country. 

"That means hundreds more counties will need to find ways to comply with the Clean Air Act, and the act gives them the authority to do so. As a result, other states will look to enact regulations similar to CARB.

"California fleets are already on their way to compliance, mandated by the Truck and Bus Regulation. They’re reaching attainment by a combination of cycling out old trucks and retrofitting diesel particulate filters (DPFs), which buys time until final compliance.

"But fleets in other parts of the country might not have the DPF option. According to Matt Schrap, president of California Fleet Solutions, an emissions consulting firm, the technology in aftermarket retrofits today generally would not bring diesel truck emissions into compliance with the latest rules."

Read Brown's Auto Focus blog post to find out why.