Municipal officials hope to develop plans for each community to reduce carbon footprints and counter the effects of global warming. by Kelley Bouchard, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story In less than 100 years, strolling from shop to shop along Commercial Street in Portland or running with your dog on Willard Beach in South Portland Read More
Electric Vehicles (EVs)
Electric vehicles (EVs) are fun to drive and cheaper to fuel. The cars are not just good for the people driving them though. More Mainers driving electric cars benefits everybody else in Maine, too. They are better for Maine’s environment, economy, and energy independence than gas-powered cars.
While there are plug-in electric cars that are fully electric, you can also find plug-in electric cars that take some gasoline as well to extend their range of travel. Our electricity mix here in Maine is one of the cleanest in the country, and that makes plug-in electric cars far more environmentally friendly than even the most efficient non-plug-in hybrid car.
Lawmakers Oppose New Fees on Maine Hybrid and Electric Cars
Democrats on the transportation committee reject a LePage administration proposal to make electric and hybrid vehicles more expensive to own in Maine. By Peter McGuire, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story Democratic lawmakers rejected a proposal from Gov. Paul LePage’s administration to make owning hybrid and electric cars more expensive in a committee-level vote Read More
Low Gas Tax, Not EVs, Causing Shortfall in Highway Fund
If today’s drivers contributed as much as their grandparents, there would be no problem. Portland Press Herald editorial Maine has a free-rider problem when it comes to infrastructure, but it’s not the one they are talking about in Augusta. Gov. LePage and his allies in the Legislature want to charge an annual fee to the Read More
2018 Legislative Priorities for Maine’s Environment
The 2018 legislative session is well underway. This is the “short session” of the Legislature, which means the pace is fast as lawmakers attempt to adjourn by the end of April. It is also an election year for every House and Senate seat, and it is Governor Paul LePage’s final year in office, adding an Read More
Opposition to LD 1806, An Act to Ensure Equity in the Funding of Maine’s Transportation Infrastructure by Imposing an Annual Fee on Hybrid and Electric Vehicles
Senator Collins, Representative McLean, and members of the Joint Standing Committee on Transportation, My name is Dylan Voorhees and I am the Clean Energy Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM.) Thank you for allowing us to present this testimony. NRCM strongly opposes this legislation. The bill would impose an arbitrary and punitive Read More
Should Hybrid Owners Pay More for Highways?
The proposed tax would be $150 a year on hybrids and $250 on electrics. by Don Carrigan NewscenterMaine news story AUGUSTA (NEWS CENTER Maine) — Legislators may be hearing some tough talk from their energy-conscious constituents. The LePage administration is proposing a special tax on hybrid and electric vehicles, to raise more money for repairing Read More
LePage-backed Bill would Slap Extra Annual Fee on Electric, Hybrid Cars
The transportation department says owners don’t pay enough gas taxes to the highway maintenance fund, but environmental groups and drivers say the state should find another way to fill the gap. by Peter McGuide, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story The LePage administration is proposing to make it more expensive to own a hybrid Read More
Final Tax Bill Includes Damaging Provision to Drill for Oil in the Arctic
Statement of Lisa Pohlmann, Executive Director, Natural Resources Council of Maine “We are deeply disappointed in Senator Susan Collins’ vote for the final tax bill, which overturns decades of protection from oil drilling in the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). This vote betrays the will of the majority of Mainers, and reverses Senator Collins’ Read More
Incentives for Electric Vehicles Provide Alternative to Oil Dependence
By Sean Mahoney, Special to the BDN Bangor Daily News op-ed As climate change continues to worsen, the price tag from natural disasters and other associated impacts keeps rising. This is a scientific and economic certainty, as recently highlighted by the GAO report issued at the request of Sen. Susan Collins. Unfortunately, the United States’ Read More
