Posted on 01/22/25
| News Source: FOX45
With a stroke of a pen, President Donald Trump signed a slew of executive orders on his first day in office – and one included halting electric vehicle mandates and now, some lawmakers in Maryland are calling on Gov. Wes Moore to do the same.
One of the orders from the White House was called ‘unleashing American energy,’ eliminating the electric vehicle mandate and “promote true consumer choice.”
Hours later, the Maryland Freedom Caucus, MFC, sent a letter to Gov. Moore calling on him to rescind some of the mandates in the state relating to electric vehicles. Del. Matt Morgan, chair of the MFC, said the mandates aren’t good for consumers.
“People don’t realize that in 2026, 43% of all the cars that sold in Maryland have to be EV. It’s completely unrealistic,” Del. Morgan said.
Is Maryland equipped to handle the level of mandates outlined in the current plans? Del. Morgan said, “not even close.”
We are not even remotely close to being ready, Del. Morgan added.
“The Governor is a really reasonable person. He wants to do what’s best for Marylanders and this is obviously the right decision for him to make and we want to help him make that decision,” he said.
While not directly answering yes or no to questions about rolling back EV mandates in Maryland, Gov. Moore’s Office said electric vehicle incentives have led to more choice and innovation in the market, and that choice remains in the hands of consumers. Electric trucks, charging and batter technology is developed in Maryland, according to Gov. Moore’s team, which “will also drive economic growth and innovation in our state.”
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“Clean cars and clean trucks standards do not ban ownership of gasoline vehicles but instead incentivize manufacturers to maximize choice and innovation in the market with hybrid and electric products,” the statement continued.
While the calls for rolling back the EV plans in Maryland are coming from members in the House, Senate President Bill Ferguson acknowledged federal funding to help the state with some of its climate solution plans likely are not going to come with a Trump Administration.
“Given our budget situation, we have to prioritize what can we do, what will have the biggest impact,” Sen. Ferguson, D-Baltimore City, said Tuesday. “I do think it will force us to address the scope of initiatives with a greater lens of prioritization and we have to have a bigger focus on what’s going to have the biggest impact to reduce our carbon emissions goals, knowing that there’s going to be less federal funds to backfill.”
Sen. Ferguson pointed to a briefing from members of Gov. Moore’s administration that’s scheduled to take place Wednesday afternoon during a Senate committee hearing as a chance to get some answers to regarding the data about EVs in Maryland.
“I think we have to ask some hard questions about the percentage of EVs purchased in Maryland based on where our goals are today and have an honest conversation about how we can achieve that without having a negative impact to choices of Marylanders overall and costs associated,” he continued.
However, pausing implementation of various plans, including electric vehicle mandates, sends the wrong message about Maryland’s commitment to investing in climate change solutions, Sen. Fergusson said, and that “will never be the case.”
“We have to do everything we can, but we also have to be realistic about the facts on the ground,” he concluded.
Gov. Moore’s administration intends to continue offering tax incentives for purchasing electric vehicles and expanding the charging infrastructure, his office said via statement, beyond what’s currently in place.