EPA Delivers on President’s “Freedom to Fix” Memorandum for Vehicles and Equipment
WASHINGTON – Today, pursuant to President Trump’s directive in the Presidential Memorandum, “Lowering the Cost of Living by Promoting the Freedom to Fix,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is advancing the freedom to fix for all Americans, regardless of vehicle or equipment type. EPA’s guidance affirms that, under the Clean Air Act (CAA), manufacturers must provide Americans access to the same service and repair information they make available to their own branded service centers. This includes Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) and other environmental control systems for on highway vehicles.
This action builds on EPA’s February 2026 guidance advancing operators’ ability to fix their nonroad diesel equipment and the agency’s actions to address nationwide concerns for American drivers, truckers, farmers, and equipment operators regarding DEF. In total, all of EPA’s actions are saving operators invaluable time, productivity, and money.
“Within 30 days of issuing his Presidential Memorandum, President Trump wanted EPA to act. We have operated at Trump speed and provided relief to American operators within just two days,” said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. “The freedom to fix allows operators to fix broken machinery easier and faster. Today’s action builds on the great work the Trump Administration has accomplished to lower costs for hard-working Americans.”
For years, manufacturers have worked to provide consumers and independent repair shops with the same diagnostic and repair information they provide to franchised dealers. However, the CAA anti-tampering laws have caused some confusion regarding whether giving out certain tools and information would be considered enabling the tampering of emission control systems. This has forced Americans to travel long distances, hurting productivity, to get costly repairs done by manufacturers, when the repair easily could have been done at home or at a local repair shop. The CAA clearly states that temporary overrides of emission control systems are allowed when it is for the “purpose of repair” to that equipment to obtain proper functionality. EPA’s guidance, therefore, clarifies that light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers have a long-standing legal obligation to release the service information, training information, and tools necessary to diagnose and repair vehicles, including faulty DEF systems, on reasonable terms.
The agency is also reinforcing important consumer protections in the CAA, making clear that manufacturers cannot require the use of their own branded parts and that Americans can use generic, equivalent parts when fixing emissions control systems, including DEF systems. However, if a consumer chooses to use a noncertified part, the CAA does not guarantee warranty relief. Today’s actions do not change the law, weaken emission standards, or reduce compliance obligations. The obligations laid out in EPA’s guidance do not extend to those proprietary elements of manufacturers’ designs, software codes, or any other intellectual proprietary or confidential business information that is currently protected from disclosure in accordance with the CAA.
More information can be found at EPA’s website, https://www.epa.gov/ve-certification/freedom-fix.
Background
Earlier today, EPA recognized the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) as an alternative certification authority for aftermarket vehicle parts. Moving forward, Americans will be able to use SEMA’s Certified Emissions (SC-E) Program to show compliance with the CAA and verify that approved aftermarket parts do not negatively impact vehicle emissions. This action fulfills another key aspect of President Trump’s directive.
Since day one, the Trump EPA has worked diligently to implement the President’s agenda to lower costs across the nation by fixing the regulatory mess inherited from the Biden EPA and has already delivered cost savings for American families that add up now into the trillions. Today’s announcement builds on the major vehicle and equipment wins delivered under Administrator Zeldin’s leadership, which include the repeal of the 2009 Endangerment Finding, saving Americans over $2,400 per new vehicle and eliminating incentives for manufacturers to include the start-stop button in vehicles. The Trump EPA has also made great strides in addressing Diesel Exhaust Fluid issues harming American truckers and farmers. The agency has taken multiple actions to protect consumer choice and end electric vehicle mandates, including the transmittal to Congress of three Biden EPA waivers for California that were then terminated via Congressional Review Act bills passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump.