AUGUSTA, Maine — The rollout of potential regulations to drastically reduce sales of gas-powered vehicles in Maine was delayed by a year as environmental regulators had to postpone a key vote after a storm caused widespread power outages.
The Environmental Protection Council postponed its December 21 vote and will not meet again before the end of the year. The delay means the proposed rules will need to be changed to take effect for vehicles in the 2028 model year instead of the 2027 model year, and also reopened for public comment, said Jeff Crawford, director of the Bureau of Air Quality for the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.
The original proposal would ultimately require 82% of new vehicles sold to be considered zero-emission by the 2032 model year. A dozen states have already signed on to California's standards to boost sales of electric vehicles and curb sales of traditional vehicles to meet climate goals.
Critics of environmental regulations were happy to have a second chance to express their opinions. Additional public comment is allowed through February 5.
House Republican Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham, an opponent of the proposed regulations, said widespread power outages would have made it difficult to charge electric cars, underscoring the need to reconsider the proposal.
If advocates insist on looking to California for modeling policies, “the next step is to ban chainsaws and generators,” he said.
But the Natural Resources Council of Maine, which supports the new rules, noted that climate change likely contributed to the storm and “should serve as a stark reminder that protecting Maine's people and Maine's environment requires decisive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
The proposal took an unorthodox path using a process where any Maine resident can submit an agenda item with 150 signatures from registered voters.
That process has been used a few times over the years at the Board of Environmental Protection, a civilian board appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate.