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on July 28, 2020
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Walz Wants Electric Vehicles to Be 20 Percent of All Vehicles on the Road By 2030

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy

The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MNDOT) has recently released its 2019 Sustainability Report, which sheds light on the Walz Administration's desire to radically change the way Minnesotans drive. According to the report, the Walz administration wants 20 percent of the vehicles registered in Minnesota to be electric vehicles (EVs) even though these vehicles are more expensive and less useful than traditional cars, especially during cold Minnesota winters. The Walz Administration's EV goals are laughably unrealistic. EVs currently constitute 0.25 percent of the registered vehicles in Minnesota, which amounts to 12,750 out of the more than 5.1 million cars registered in the...

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on November 26, 2019
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Are Governor Walz’s Proposed California Car Mandates Racist?

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy, Transportation

In September, the Walz Administration announced its intention to force Minnesotans to comply with low-emissions vehicle (LEV) and 'zero'-emissions vehicle (ZEV) regulations developed by unelected bureaucrats on the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Instead of asking the legislature to approve this move, Governor Walz wants to impose these regulations by using the rule-making process of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). As part of this process, MPCA is seeking comments from the public to inform the rule-making procedure. I encourage you to submit your comments by emailing sheena.denny@state.mn.us to let the agency know what your thoughts are about the subject. One of...

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on November 22, 2019
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MIT Pumps the Brakes on Electric Vehicle Cost Decline Estimates

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy, Transportation

A new report from the MIT Energy Initiative warns that EVs may never reach the same sticker price so long as they rely on lithium-ion batteries, the energy storage technology that powers most of today’s consumer electronics. In fact, the research found it will likely take another decade just to eliminate the difference in the lifetime costs between electric vehicles and gas- and diesel-powered vehicles, even after higher fuel and maintenance expenses of standard cars and trucks are taken into account. Hopefully Governor Walz and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, who want to adopt California regulations mandating the use of electric cars,...

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on November 21, 2019
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Help Us Stop Governor Walz From Imposing California’s Car Rules on Minnesota!

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy, Transportation

In late September, Governor Walz announced that he would seek to impose California's mandates for zero emission vehicles and low emission vehicles on Minnesota. Rather than passing this proposal through the normal legislative process, Governor Walz is trying to impose these rules on Minnesotans by instructing the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to draft the mandates forcing our state to comply with regulations drafted by unelected bureaucrats on the California Air Resources Board. Why wouldn't Governor Walz want to go through the legislative process where legislators can weigh the pros and cons of the proposal and vote accordingly? Probably because these regulations...

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