What’s Happening

There is a time and a place for government action; that time is now and that place is New Jersey. While we are late in leading, let’s be fast to follow 10 other states and finalize California’s Advanced Clean Cars II (ACCII) rules this year. These standards will require that new cars sold after 2035 have no tailpipe and our state’s swift adoption will help ensure clean air for generations to come.

The ACCII proposal comes at a time when our carbon binge is catching up with us in undeniable and alarming ways. We are living the impacts daily, choking on wildfire smoke and enduring extreme storms, deadly flooding, and dangerously high temperatures. This is not the new normal; it is just the beginning, and it will get worse. What alternative do we have but to reduce our carbon diet in a sensible, evidence-based way?

The ACCII standards are far from extreme — the proposed rule gives New Jersey 12 years to comply.  Every exaggerated fear expressed by Big Oil front groups can be fully addressed by then.

Ambition and achievement — America’s heritage

In America, we have proven time and again we can do ambitious and difficult things. Nearly 60 years ago, we landed on the moon. In New Jersey we installed 40 times more solar than we thought possible. Every time we enacted bold regulations that improved our health and safety like banning leaded gas, preventing manufacture of incandescent light bulbs or restricting child labor, naysayers claimed it was un-American, an attack on our freedoms. The sky didn’t fall then, and it won’t fall now. Sometimes, strong action is needed to meet the moment: addressing the climate crisis is one of those moments.

Joining New York, Massachusetts, Virginia, Washington, Oregon, Maryland, Delaware, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut and California will lead to manufacturers meeting both consumer demand and sales targets included in this regulation, giving us plenty of car choices at reasonable prices, which will prevent literally tons of carbon and clean the air in our urban centers.

Seventeen years ago, when New Jersey was debating whether to adopt the first clean-car rules, special-interest opposition groups drove golf carts around the State House, telling the public that these were the vehicles they’d be stuck driving if New Jersey joined California. The last time I looked, the Ford Mach-E does not bear much resemblance to a golf cart.

 Opponents write that adopting this rule will result in “blackouts and brownouts and economic and social harm.” This is fearmongering. Utilities have long-term planning processes for future development and are well able to prepare for changes in the market. After World War II, electricity demand grew by 7% each year; utilities figured it out then and they are figuring it out now.

Reaping $100B in benefits

Much gets written about the cost of ACCII and the electrification of our transportation sector. One of the first extensive ChargEVC-NJ studies modeled the benefits of the electrification transition for all New Jersey citizens — EV and non-EV drivers. According to our analysis, when managed charging is widely deployed and vehicle electrification is coupled with increased renewable energy use, electrification delivers nearly $100 billion in net benefits to New Jersey residents after considering costs. Those benefits include reduced costs to power vehicles and reduced electricity costs for all electric customers.

Another recent report similarly concludes that New Jersey residents could reap significant health and economic benefits from the rule, including avoiding 175 to 358 premature deaths and annual electricity rate savings of up to $174 for the average New Jersey household and $728 for the average commercial utility customer.

While it’s important to have a robust debate on the merits of following this path, let’s fight fair and not indulge in fearmongering or mischaracterizing facts. Let’s make sure we draw a big circle when we capture all the costs and all the benefits. Improved health outcomes should be counted as a benefit, just as any costs to the electric distribution system should be counted.

I’ve been around state government long enough to know it takes a lot of hard work, creativity, patience, commitment and leadership. I also know — and have seen firsthand — regulations are an important and necessary tool to achieve big, ambitious goals. Not one major automotive manufacturer — all of whom have doubled down on electrification and invested billions in factories — went on the record to oppose the ACCII standards. What does that tell us?

If we avoid spending money on petroleum sourced from outside New Jersey and instead use electricity made from renewable resources closer to home, we all win. We all win with cleaner air and lower costs of electricity, and for those who drive cars, trucks, and buses, there will be lower costs to operate and fuel these vehicles. Let’s get to winning.