EV mandate will have concerning impact

In March, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized the nation’s most stringent tailpipe emissions rules to date — a move that has been met with much pushback. To comply with these mandates from the EPA, two-thirds of all new vehicles will need to be electric by 2032. The impacts of this de facto gas car ban are distressing and are being blatantly overlooked, lacking any consideration for consumers. Without lawmakers taking immediate action to put a stop to this mandate, many concerning challenges will unfold across the nation and in Montana.

To make the drastic shift to EVs that these mandates would require, we need a robust electric grid nationwide or we face an increased risk of blackouts and brownouts. To be frank, Montana does not have the necessary electric grid infrastructure in place to meet the standards the new EPA mandate requires. 

Currently, Montanans use 70% of our generated electricity, leaving little to spare, and what excess is available will be in high demand with the rapid approach of winter. Additionally, only 0.33% of our cars as of February 2024 are electric in the state. To meet the EPA’s wildly unrealistic goals, the surge of EVs on the road would certainly overburden Montana’s electric grid, increase our already unmet infrastructure needs, and take a significant toll on Montana tax payers and electric consumers.

To provide the charging stations required for EVs, over the next 10 years we would see $11,833 per EV in additional costs passed on to Montana taxpayers and utility ratepayers.

And the economic burden doesn’t stop at tax and energy bills — it extends to our state’s existing economic infrastructure. As a board member of the Montana Association of Oil, Gas, and Coal Counties, I am proud to live in a state with such strong reliance on agriculture and natural resources. Montana’s oil, gas and coal resources power our economy and directly provide over 8% of the state’s workforce with secure employment. If we are required to meet the threshold of EVs under the EPA’s new mandate, small communities across our state that rely on our natural resource industries to fund our communities and provide good-paying jobs will see a dramatic economic decline.

These concerns have also been mentioned in a recent lawsuit filed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, the American Petroleum Institute, the National Corn Growers Association and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which highlights the concerns regarding the impact of EPA standards on the average American and the economy. Without policymakers’ outspoken dissatisfaction with the EPA mandate, this mandate’s negative impacts will be felt in Montana, and across America, for years to come; which is why it is critical that both Sen. Jon Tester and his opponent, Tim Sheehy, oppose the EPA’s EV mandate.

The U.S. House recently passed a joint resolution to nullify the EPA’s EV rules that established requirements for vehicle emissions, batteries and fuel, but to be successful, the resolution’s counterpart must also pass in the Senate.

Congressional opposition of the EPA’s mandate would protect our state and in the upcoming vote in the Senate, Montanans need Sen. Tester to support passing Senate Joint Resolution 75 to stop the implementation of Biden’s EV mandate and protect the interests of rural Montanans and ratepayers.

John Ostlund is a Yellowstone County commissioner and a director for the Montana Association of Oil, Gas, and Coal Counties.