One of New Jersey’s top Democrat elected officials told a packed house at this year’s New Jersey Business and Industry Association’s annual public policy forum that Governor Phil Murphy’s 2035 gas-powered car ban “Is not happening.”
This comes as Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont became the first 2035 gas car ban state to pull out of the initiative started by California Governor Gavin Newsom.
Lamont announced he would end the plan after receiving criticism and pushback from his own state legislature on the matter.
In New Jersey, Democrat Senator Paul Sarlo, chair of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, said Murphy’s plan will not happen.
“I know everybody in this room fully understands the need to invest in green energy and move in that direction — I don’t think anybody here is opposed to that,” he said. “However, to be practical about it, 2035 is not happening.”
Sarlo noted that New Jersey’s electrical grid and electric car infrastructure is not ready for such a mandate.
“There is a significant amount of federal investment in our infrastructure that needs to go on before we can tell everybody to go out and buy an electric car,” he added. “I am sure somebody in the DEP thought this was a great idea to get a great headline, but it’s not practical and we know that, and I think you all know that.”
Sarlo commended the notion of a cleaner environment but said the state and the industry have a long way to go to get there.