By MICHAEL WHITNEY
Published September 21, 2022

Proposed statewide change to ban new gas cars from sale in 2035 taking comments

A formal proposal would ban the sale of new gas-powered and gas-electric hybrid vehicles by 2035 statewide.
The state Department of Ecology is taking public comments on this until Oct. 19.
Submit comments online, by mail or at the public hearing. A shortlink to the comment page is www.tinyurl.com/EcologyComment
    By postal mail, send to:
    Adam Saul
    Department of Ecology
    Air Quality Program
    P.O. Box 47600
    Olympia, WA 98504-7600
Public hearing
Ecology will hold an online public hearing at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 12 on Zoom. A shortlink to register for the hearing is www.tinyurl.com/EcologyZoom
Gov. Jay Inslee announced plans late last month to phase out new gas vehicle sales by 2035, mirroring a similar move by California.
Neither state’s regulation would impede used car sales.
In addition to requiring 100% zero-emission vehicles for new car sales by 2035, the proposed rules would adopt California’s rules for cleaner heavy-duty engines, implement early-action credits for zero-emission vehicle sales in model years 2023 and 2024 and institute a one-time fleet reporting requirement.
Some automakers have publicly announced their intent to sell only electric vehicles, including General Motors (by 2035; with Buick and Cadillac going all-electric by 2030), Volvo (by 2030), Mercedes-Benz (by 2030), Toyota (by 2040), plus the Chrysler brand going all-electric by 2028 and Ford Motor Company’s Lincoln brand going all-electric by 2030.
Last year, a state ban on gas cars from 2030 onward failed. Inslee vetoed that because that bill tied the 2030 deadline as being triggered only if a per-mile road usage fee for transportation funding was in place. The state is still exploring a road fee system, but Inslee said in his veto that the two topics shouldn’t be intermingled.

Calling all Snohomians

Who’s the oldest Snohomish Panther still around? Maybe it’s your relative? Maybe it’s you? The Tribune wants to find out. Tell us who you think it is: write to P.O. Box 499, Snohomish, WA 98291, email to editor.tribune@snoho.com
or call 360-568-4121.
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