The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday issued guidance to diesel equipment manufacturers saying they no longer need to use urea quality sensors to meet emissions control system parameters, but can instead turn to nitrogen oxides sensors and other alternative methods in the hopes of reducing diesel exhaust fluid system failures.

The guidance states manufacturers are allowed to meet emissions control parameters using alternative means to urea quality sensors, which have been identified by the Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association as having “among the highest failure rate of any” selective catalytic reduction components.

The guidance is not binding, but “is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies,” the guidance document says. The Small Business Administration expects the guidance to save farmers $4.4 billion a year, according to an EPA press release.

The guidance was released in conjunction with a White House agriculture event in which President Donald Trump said his administration will be “drastically limiting these ridiculous DEF rules, saving farmers and consumers billions.

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“We are cutting out massive amounts of nonsense that are mandated to be put onto your tractors and all of your trucks that cost you a fortune,” Trump said at the event.

North Carolina cotton farmer Mark Grant told Agri-Pulse at the event that Trump’s focus on diesel exhaust fluid was a "good thing" and called the substance “kind of a hassle.”

In a statement, Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association Executive Vice President Timothy Blubaugh called the guidance "evidence of EPA’s continued willingness to find solutions that will improve the real-world operation of diesel engines with [Selective Catalytic Reduction] aftertreatment systems."

In a statement, John Deere Vice President for Global Government Affairs Kyle Gilley said the company "applauds the EPA's leadership to provide as much flexibility through agency guidance as possible to limit the frequency of false DEF-quality inducements."

“Today’s announcement builds upon EPA guidance from February 2026, requested by John Deere, to provide farmers additional tools to complete emissions-related repairs," Gilley said. "These announcements are a win for farmers and their ability to keep modern equipment operating in the field."

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