04-04-2025
Moore to issue executive order that could delay EV sales penalties
Gov. Wes Moore (D) takes a spin in an electric Mustang outside the Montgomery Park development in Baltimore Monday. Photo from the Executive Office of the Governor.
Gov. Wes Moore (D) plans to issue an executive order Friday that could delay initial penalties for electric vehicle manufacturers who do not meet sales goals under a prescriptive state plan that is supposed to take effect next year.
The order will maximize the Maryland Department of Environment's enforcement discretion 'to ease compliance' with the rule – including the possibility of postponing penalties.
The order echoes a bill proposed this year by Del. Dana Stein (D-Baltimore County) that would prevent penalties from being assessed in model years 2027 and 2028, the sources said.
Stein's bill is advancing in the final days of the General Assembly session. It received an initial approval from the House of Delegates Friday.
Maryland adopted a California program called Advanced Clean Cars II, which requires that electric vehicles account for 43% of cars sold in the state by a manufacturer in the 2027 model year. The number grows to 51% in model year 2028, eventually reaching 100% by the 2035 model year.
Stein has argued that the state is behind on attaining the required percentage of EVs, and expressed concern that auto manufacturers will send fewer cars to Maryland to comply with the rule.
Environmental groups have pushed back hard, arguing that manufacturers can trade credits to comply, and that penalties won't be assessed under the rule until three years after model year 2027.
Moore's order would also establish an oversight panel focused on the Clean Cars rule.
– This story will be updated.
