2 weeks Ago By SHAYLA ESCUDERO [email protected]
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Linn County's elected leaders are extending their support of a bill that will delay Oregon’s clean truck rule. State Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis, R-Albany, joined the Tuesday Feb.
4 Board of Commissioners meeting by telephone to relay an update on House Bill 3119, which seeks a delay in the rollout of various efforts to reduce diesel emissions. In this file photo, District 5 Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis of Albany talks about priorities in the 2021 session.
This year, she is sponsoring a bill that would delay the Oregon's clean truck rules, saying the state doesn't have the charging infrastructure. Boshart Davis, who owns Boshart trucking based in Linn County, is a chief sponsor of the bill, which would pause the clean truck rules until 2027. With a goal to slow greenhouse gas emissions and cut air pollutants, Oregon lawmakers adopted several rules to reduce diesel truck pollution.
This file 2015 photo shows several hundred backlogged trucks at the Port of Seattle, some which were owned by Boshart Trucking in Tangent. Owner and state Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis is sponsoring a bill that would delay the start of clean truck rules aimed at transitioning heavy-duty vehicles to zero-emission motors.
Several states, including Oregon, have adopted clean truck rules that align with California’s standards, requiring a certain percentage of vehicle manufacturers’ sales to be zero-emission vehicles. That rule, which mandates 7% to 11% of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles be zero-emission, just went into effect at the start of this year. People are also reading.
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The Linn County Board of Commissioners' Tuesday agenda included an item to discuss House Bill 3119, "which would would delay ban on sale of certain vehicles and equipment that use a diesel motor such as trucks, tractors etc." Commissioner Roger Nyquist reads aloud the agenda at the Tuesday, Feb. 4 Board of Commissioners meeting.
According to DEQ, the rules are not a ban, and manufacturers have the flexibility to determine which vehicle models to move to zero-emissions models. “Manufacturers can continue to produce and sell gasoline- or diesel-powered trucks, like motor homes or tow trucks, while focusing on electrifying other vehicles, such as zero-emission school buses,” according to DEQ’s fact page. The state and utility providers are working to make sufficient infrastructure available for such a transition.
But proponents of HB 3119 say it's not fast enough. They say the rules are premature because Oregon doesn’t yet have the infrastructure to support certain electrical vehicles and equipment for trucking. “We don't have the infrastructure to charge them,” Boshart Davis said.
“For example, there is one commercially available supercharger in the state of Oregon, and that's in Portland, that will actually charge commercially and publicly. These are heavy-duty trucks. And there are only 18 of these available in the nation.
Commissioner Sherrie Sprenger listens to Rep. Shelley Boshart Davis, who phoned into the Tuesday Feb. 4 Board of Commissioners meeting.
"We're not ready. We're simply asking for a delay in the rules by two years,” Boshart said, repeating: “We aren't ready.” The rules impact many different types of vehicles, from tow trucks to cement mixers and tractor trucks that “move Linn County’s economy,” Boshart said.
“Even if they did work ...
They only run about half the miles as a normal diesel truck, and they cost twice as much," she said. Opponents of the delay say the bill undermines the state’s authority to regulate clean air and a delay could have lasting impacts on human health, according to reporting from the Statesman Journal. Commissioner Sherrie Sprenger asked where the bill was in the legislative process.
Boshart Davis answered that an informational hearing on the clean trucks rule was held before the Joint Transportation Committee. More than 60 people testified in person, while others submitted a few hundred pieces of testimony, many of which were in support of the bill. In the end, Commissioners Roger Nyquist, Will Tucker and Sprenger unanimously to send a letter of support for Senate Bill 3119.
Related stories: What Oregon's switch to EVs and hybrid vehicles really means PETER WONGOregon Capital Bureau What Trump's administration could mean for Oregon's forests Alex Powers 10 min to read More Linn County news Shayla Escudero graduated University of Southern California with a Master of Science in Journalism. She covers Albany city hall and Linn County. She is passionate about telling people forward stories and shining a light on injustices.
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