Maine’s top environmental regulator has rejected the state’s electric vehicle (EV) mandate in a surprise vote, bucking concerns about climate change expressed by eco groups and Democrats.
The Maine Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) has rejected the so-called Advanced Clean Car Program after overwhelming opposition from stakeholders and residents. The proposed program is Mirror regulations approved in California, It requires at least 51% of new vehicles purchased in the state to be electric by 2028 and 82% by 2032.
“The Maine Environmental Protection Commission received nearly 1,800 comments from Mainers, and nearly 84% disapproved of this EV mandate,” said Trey Stewart, Republican leader of the Maine Senate. He told FOX News Digital. “Maine is too rural and there are too few charging stations, and many Mainers are concerned about the reliability of these vehicles during extremely cold weather.”
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Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills is pursuing broad climate action, pushing both vehicle electrification and green energy development. (Getty Images)
According to BEP’s filing, the state received a total of 1,783 public comment letters earlier this year, of which only 287 supported the advanced clean car rule. A whopping 1,496 letters were submitted in opposition to this mandate.
Stakeholders who submitted letters of opposition included the Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers of America, the Maine Automobile Dealers Association, and Democratic Maine Representative Jared Golden, who represents a largely rural district. Ta.
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“In rural Maine, affordable transportation is not a luxury, but a necessity,” Golden said in a social media post on X (formerly Twitter) after the vote. “Regulations must recognize reality: California-style emissions standards would impose logistical and financial hurdles that Maine is not prepared to clear. I made the right decision.”
Congressman Jared Golden speaks in Bath, Maine. (AP Photo/David Sharp, File)
The Maine BEP originally planned to vote on adopting the Advanced Clear Car Program in late December, but a major storm caused widespread power outages across the state and forced the closure of state offices. Official vote postponed indefinitely.
The agency ultimately proposed a slightly revised version of the EV mandate, pushing the start date from 2027 to 2028 and accepting new comments from the public and stakeholders until early February.
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Critics of aggressive EV requirements warned that Maine: Power grid is currently not in place This is to cope with the demand and load that will increase significantly due to the spread of EVs. They also argued that power outages caused by storms like December’s storm could render large swaths of the electrified transportation sector unusable.
After California introduced a full EV mandate in 2022, several other states have followed suit. After the mandate was announced, California Governor Gavin Newsom said the state “continues to lead the revolution toward a future of zero-emission transportation.” (California Governor Gavin Newsom YouTube Channel)
According to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a group representing major automakers, 5.8% of total car purchases in Maine last year were electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. This number is lower than the national average of 9.3%.
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On the other hand, California’s EV mandate regulations announced in August 2022 have been successfully implemented in more than a dozen states. California’s plan calls for 100% of all car purchases to be electric by 2035.
Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who has pursued aggressive climate change policies since taking office, did not respond to requests for comment at the time of press time.
