Statement on DEP’s Consideration of California-style vehicle regulations
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 17, 2023
Contact: Jacob Posik
Director of Legislative Affairs
Office: 207.321.2550
Statement on Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s
Consideration of California-style Internal Combustion Engine Bans
The proposed rules would have no quantifiable impact on climate, but they would impoverish Maine families and undermine the state’s economy.
PORTLAND, Maine – Maine Policy Institute CEO Matthew Gagnon issued the following statement today on the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s consideration of the Advanced Clean Cars II and Advanced Clean Trucks programs:
“This radical effort by environmental groups to force Maine to adopt California-style electric vehicle regulations will do nothing to stop or reverse the effects of climate change, but it will hurt families and businesses, undermine our economy and further impoverish those who already live on the margins in our state.
These groups are pushing these regulations because they want to ban the sale of vehicles with internal combustion engines. To them, we ask these simple questions. First, if Maine were to adopt these regulations today, what quantifiable impact would it have on the climate? Second, are those unobservable, immeasurable impacts worth the economic devastation that would undoubtedly be caused by their adoption?
The realities are that Maine families cannot afford electric vehicles and the available technology for medium- and heavy-duty electric trucks does not accommodate the needs of Maine businesses and the supply chain. Further, our electric grid cannot handle such a rapid transition to electric vehicles at all levels of personal and economic use, and the infrastructure does not exist to ensure all Mainers can safely and conveniently travel using electric vehicles.
The implementation of either of these programs would have catastrophic results for Maine people and businesses. We strongly condemn these attempts to undermine free markets and encourage the Maine DEP to send these nonsensical rules to where they belong – the dustbin of history.”
In 2022, Maine Policy joined a coalition of organizations from across a country that released a public letter opposing the adoption of California-style bans on internal combustion engines through the adoption of the Advanced Clean Cars II and Advanced Clean Trucks programs.
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Maine Policy Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to expand individual liberty and economic freedom in Maine. Learn more about our work at www.mainepolicy.org.