I would like to read to you a few of the
comments my office is receiving from farm workers regarding
mandating vehicle electrification:
“We are involved in your daily
lives. We grow, pick and pack the food you eat every day. We cannot
afford an electric vehicle.”
“We live throughout the State from
Humboldt County in the north, to the Imperial Valley in the South,
from the Salinas Valley to the San Joaquin Valley. Rural towns and
small cities do not have the charging stations nor enough power to
have electric vehicles."
“We work hard to provide for our
families but forcing us to switch to electric vehicles is too
expensive.”
“By the time used electric
vehicles are affordable for us, the cost to replace the battery and
other maintenance costs will put the vehicles out of our reach
again.”
“We want clean air and water, but
we need affordable vehicles that are easy to refuel so that we can
go to work, to the store, doctor’s appointments and visit
family.”
“Many times, we feel that we are
an afterthought and get left behind when important decisions are
being made like forcing us to have electric vehicles.”
“Large cities are a logical place
to start. They probably have access to charging stations, are
more likely to be able to afford an electric vehicle and would go a
long way to contribute to achieving the state’s climate
goals.”
“Rural communities and small cities do
not have infrastructure nor charging stations if we all had
electric vehicles.”
Please consider what this decision will do to
the underserved, the small farmer, the small cities and the farm
workers that put food on our tables.