Democrat Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont withdrew proposed regulations to phase out the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

The governor’s administration pulled the plug on the plan after learning opponents of the regulations had the votes to kill the proposal.

“The legislature’s Regulation Review Committee was supposed to vote on these new emissions standards Tuesday,” FOX 61 noted.

With the proposal scrapped, Lamont’s administration must open talks on a new plan to pass the full General Assembly in 2024.

FOX 61 reports:

For months, legislative Republicans have been bashing these proposed regulations to phase out all new sales of internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035.

This proposal comes from a bipartisan law passed in 2004, which tied Connecticut to California’s emissions standards.

Republicans argue electric vehicles are unaffordable for most residents and would be hard to implement because the state power grid needs major upgrades.

This opposition from Republicans and industry experts led to this last-minute change.

“Setting practical policy, pragmatic policy is a far better direction for our air quality and our environment than setting a mandate that we have no plan how to roll it out,” said state Sen. Stephen Harding, ranking member on the Environment Committee.

“The Governor’s decision to pull proposed regulations banning the sales of new gas-powered vehicles is a prudent move considering the growing revolt from a diverse chorus of stakeholders with concerns ranging from electric grid capacity and reliability to the availability of charging stations and simple freedom of choice,” House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora (R-North Branford) said, according to Patch.

From Patch:

Candelora said Democrats should “go back to the drawing board and develop a more realistic proposal that controls costs and protects consumer choice for Connecticut residents.”

However, Gov. Ned Lamont held a press conference Tuesday in which he said he will continue with his plan for moving the state toward electric vehicles. He said instead of having the 14-member committee review the plan, it will now go to the full legislature during the 2024 session, according to The Hartford Courant.

He said that the standards would follow numerous other states, including Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, and New Mexico, with almost 40% of the American population moving in this direction.

In a statement over the summer, Lamont noted that neighboring states “are taking decisive action to meet our climate pollution reduction targets,” and that cars and trucks are the largest air pollution sector in the state.

In related news, New Jersey moved forward with its plans to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

REPORT: State Will Cease Sales Of New Gas-Powered Cars By 2035

 

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