🔌 Expect a long day of testimony over electric vehicle rules.
◉ There was a large crowd on hand, including environmentalists and Republican lawmakers, at a Board of Environmental Protection hearing at the Augusta Civic Center this morning on two proposals that would push Maine toward mirroring California rules on electric vehicle adoption.
◉ The proposals came through a citizen-initiated process led by the Natural Resources Council of Maine. One affects passenger vehicles and the other addresses trucks over 8,500 pounds. Both look to increasingly phase out new sales of gas vehicles into the 2030s, citing the state's large share of transportation emissions.
◉ “Harmful emissions from gas-powered cars and trucks are driving the climate crisis and polluting the air in our communities,” Emily Green, a lawyer for the Conservation Law Foundation, said in a statement.
◉ Opponents include groups representing construction and trucking interests, as well as Republican lawmakers who argue the state is not ready for inking the terms of this transition. Gov. Janet Mills is officially neutral, indicating skepticism of mandates. The board, which she appointed, will decide what Maine does.
◉ The Maine Republican Party said Thursday that it delivered more than 1,000 signatures opposing the change to the Mills administration: "The plan, which would take away Mainers' ability to purchase less-expensive gas-powered vehicles, directly hurts people who are struggling," Chair Joel Stetkis wrote in an attached letter. |
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