Massachusetts to require 100 percent of car sales to be electric by 2035

Massachusetts plans on ending the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035, following California’s lead in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Kathleen Theoharides released a plan last week that outlined the state’s goals for 2030 and beyond.

“For the Commonwealth to achieve Net Zero, fossil fuel use must be all but completely eliminated in on-road vehicles by 2050,” reads the report.

“Given the cost and scarcity of low- or zero-carbon drop-in replacement fuels and the current market and growing availability of high efficiency battery-electric and other zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) alternatives, this likely means reaching near complete electrification of the light-duty fleet.”

Massachusetts will seek to have 30 percent of all trucks and bus sales be ZEVs by 2030, hoping to reach 100 percent of sales by 2050.

In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed an executive order that sought to phase out the sale of gas-powered passenger cars by 2035, also aiming to phase out heavy-duty vehicles by 2045.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) has voiced support for similar measures, but his state has not yet issued such an order.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), who sits on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, praised Massachusetts’s news on Twitter on Tuesday.

Bravo Massachusetts! Now, it’s time for the entire nation to take that same step by passing my Zero Emissions Vehicles Act. ZEVs will help reduce harmful carbon pollution in our transportation system, improve public health & create the jobs of the future right here in America. https://t.co/iMIfei3DxA

— Senator Jeff Merkley (@SenJeffMerkley) January 5, 2021