In response to the controversial electric vehicle (EV) mandate currently under consideration by the Maine Board of Environmental Protection (BEP), several lawmakers in the State Senate attempted Thursday to block confirmation of the Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee’s appointments to the Board.
In its current form, the mandate would require that 51 percent of new car sales in Maine be comprised of EVs by model year 2028 and 82 percent by model year 2032.
Last year, a citizen petition initiated by the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) was submitted to Maine BEP asking for “the requirements of the California Advanced Clean Cars II” to be incorporated into Maine’s existing regulatory code.
Although only 150 people Maine residents signed the petition, it nonetheless set in motion a bureaucratic process that may allow the Mills Administration to impose sweeping controls on what kinds of vehicles can be sold in Maine — all without the approval of Maine’s elected lawmakers.
Adoption of these new regulations would essentially result in the state phasing out the sale of traditional gas-powered cars and trucks in favor of EVs over the course of the next few years.
The Board is scheduled to take up consideration of this mandate at their upcoming meeting on March 20.
[RELATED: Electric Vehicle Mandate Slated for March Hearing as Mills Touts EV Charger Investments]
For each of the three nominations before lawmakers Thursday afternoon, Senate Republican Leader Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook) asked to send the nominations back to the ENR Committee in order to delay the confirmation vote until after the Board’s March 20 meeting.
Each time, however, the motion failed — thanks to Republicans who were unwilling to support Stewart.
By the end of Thursday’s session, all three nominees had been confirmed by a vote of 6 to 26.
“I feel strongly that this body should not speculate on what these folks will do one way or the other, but rather just wait a little bit,” Sen. Stewart said. “Let them decide what sort of policy they will be setting for our state in an un-elected fashion, and then we can give a more thoughtful review to whether or not any of these folks are qualified — and by that, what I mean is are they going to be putting forth good public policy.”
Stewart was one of the six lawmakers that voted against the Committee’s nominations in response to the EV mandate currently under consideration.
Sen. Jim Libby (R-Cumberland) — who voted in favor both of sending the nominations back to Committee, as well as to ultimately confirm them — took issue with the process by which the Board is considering the EV mandate.
“These are major and substantive rules that should be in front of this body, and it’s frustrating that there seems to be a circumvention of what I would normally consider legislative authority and power,” Sen. Libby said.
“I felt like when I press that button, I voted for a legislator — a legislator — and I don’t feel right about it,” Libby said later during the proceedings.
Sen. Eric Brakey (R-Androscoggin) also voted against the ENR Committee’s nominations to the BEP on account of the continued consideration of the proposed EV mandate.
“Thousands of Maine people came out trying to have their voices heard at public hearings against moving forward with consideration of electric vehicle mandates,” Sen. Brakey said. “They tried to make their voices heard. But were their voices heard?
“I wish that we were in a position to vote on these confirmations after that decision was made so we could do that with much more information and better 20/20 vision on the performance of these individuals, but that’s not the position that we’re going to be in,” Brakey said. “But I am very concerned, because this policy that they are considering would be an absolute disaster for the State of Maine.”
“The only path that we have to express our concerns and our displeasure with this process moving forward on behalf of ourselves and our constituents is to vote in opposition at this point in time to the confirmation of these positions,” said Brakey.
Sen. Lisa Keim (R-Oxford) also voted against the ENR Committee’s nominees, noting that her decision to not support their appointments has nothing to do with the individuals themselves.
“The confirmation process gives us a vote for a reason,” Sen. Keim said. “We are not a rubber stamp on a committee process. My vote today is the voice of my people.”
“It is not about personalities. It is not about the person,” said Keim. “My vote today is for my people who would say absolutely we cannot risk having this happen to our lives.”
Sen. Nicole Grohoski (D-Hancock) took issue with this approach, arguing that support for or opposition to the nominees ought to be based solely on whether or not they are qualified to serve.
“[My vote] is in no way correlated to my position on any matters before the Board of Environmental Protection at this time or any that I see coming in the future, and I am not going to look at anyone else’s votes through that lens,” Sen. Grohoski said. “Because I’m just looking at whether this person should be confirmed.”
Sen. Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) who, like Libby, voted in favor of delaying the confirmations but ultimately approved of the appointments, pointed out that while he is not in favor of the EV mandate, “that’s not the decision” before the chamber.
“That’s not the decision before us,” Sen. Bennett said. “In fact, we don’t even know what the position is of these nominees on that question. They’re in the middle of a process.”
“I’d like to put this off, but that’s not going to happen,” said Bennett. “I’m not going to prejudge something which isn’t settled yet by the Board of Environmental Protection because of my concern about what they might do.”
Voting against all three of the ENR Committee’s nominations to the BEP were: Brakey, Sen. Stacey Guerin (R-Penobscot), Sen. Matt Harrington (R-York), Keim, Stewart, and Sen. Jeff Timberlake (R-Androscoggin).
In support of sending all three of the nominations back to the ENR Committee — thereby delaying the Senate’s confirmation vote — were: Bennett, Brakey, Sen. Guerin, Sen. Harrington, Keim, Libby, Sen. Peter Lyford (R-Penobscot), Sen. Marianne Moore (R-Washington), Stewart, and Sen. Timberlake.
Sen. Russell Black (R-Franklin) voted in favor of sending two out of the three nominations back to Committee, opposing the motion with respect to Steven K. Pelletier.
Confirmation votes were also held Thursday for Robert S. Duchesne and Robert M. Sanford.
Click Here to Watch Thursday’s Full Senate Meeting
Spineless.
People like this are why the leftists are allowed to run rough shod over the state and it’s people.
Again the Republicans snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. After watching this for many years now the Republicans are just Marxists in Republican clothes. The state of Maine is doomed to become another California, New York or Massachusetts.You get what you vote for.
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The worst communists in our state are those who were NOT elected to office and do NOT answer to the voters. If these red clowns try to force this down our throats they will see a response that they cannot imagine. How long is Maine going to be in the hands of this vile crowd?
Sen. Bennett said. “In fact, we don’t even know what the position is of these nominees on that question.” Does that make the least bit of sense? Maybe to a political hack but not to the average citizen.
Wish I owned a new car dealership in New Hampshire, they are gonna sell hundreds of gas powered cars to Mainers.
These people are a JOKE!
Moderate republicans need to STOP CAVING! They must STONEWALL the liberal dems at every turn because liberal dems get to the finish line by taking their lead one INCH at a time. Republicans must band together and STONEWALL! The likes of Sen. Bennett must stop trying to play both sides at the expense of his constituents.
The lefty governor and the unelected bureaucrats, and their few hundred crazy enviro hard case supporters are truly evil. Maine voters and it’s elected legislators, who answer to those voters, are supposed to make the laws. Who turned this place into a kingdom now governed by royal edict?
I love all the talk about “Commies” as the only president I know that kneeled to Putin was Donald J. Trump in front of the whole world. Do you realize that Trump has never said a bad word about Putin? Do you remember Don Jr. saying they didn’t need American banks as they get all their funding from Russia? You people make me laugh at how willfully blind you are to the truth. You are doing Putin’s bidding and dream of the day that we live like Russians do
I often wonder if Maine republican prefer KY or Astroglide?