TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

Electric vehicle charging infrastructure needs to be built out and reliable. Our nation's automotive manufacturer's have staked their future on electric vehicles so that they can compete globally. For us as a country to not support this initiative is disheartening. Electric vehicle technology is clean and reliable. We need to be at the forefront of electrification.

Increase subsidies for clean energy through taxes targeting industries and behaviors contributing to climate change (higher gas tax, coal, etc).

The Vermont government has been woefully inadequate in its actions to address climate change. We pride ourselves on being progressive and forward-thinking, but in truth we have made almost no progress whatsoever in addressing global warming over the last 20 years. This is shameful.

I am the Energy and Facilities Manager for Lebanon, NH. I live in and serve the Hartland, VT Energy Committee, and for 14 years served on the Brattleboro Energy Committee. I have been an active member of the VT Energy and Climate Action Network for 15 years, and have been working on energy and climate issues since undergraduate and graduate engineering school. The opportunities that we have lost through inaction are astounding, and future generations will damn us for it.

Vermont is a rural state, with many poor, working people. Reducing our transportation emissions is a huge challenge. Tremendous innovation and creativity will be needed, as well as lifestyle changes. Why is it that when America goes to war people are asked to make sacrifices, but never in the name of saving the planet? We might be a rural state, but that is no excuse for expecting people to rely solely on personal vehicles, which are costly to operate and have limitations for many, in addition to being high polluters. I have lived in Mexico, and done it without a car. Why is 3rd world Mexico so much more advanced than America in its public transportation? It is because they dedicate the resources to provide good public transportation. TCI has the potential to direct resources to alternative transportation systems and infrastructure, which would lower people's living expenses and reduce our greenhouse gasses.

TCI provides the opportunity to tackle the biggest problem of our day — climate change — by reducing emissions in our state’s most carbon-intensive sector, while diverting funds into much-needed transportation infrastructure that will benefit all.

We can either seize this opportunity to make monumental progress and have a chance to prosper in a clean energy future, or accept a status quo that is only becoming more and more difficult for Vermonters and more harmful to our environment.

I urge Vermont to formally join TCI in order to do our part to save our habitable planet for future generations.

Thank you for the work you have done to advance the TCI.

I am a disabled rider who cares about reducing pollution for the present and future generations who will become or have become disabled from environmental pollution and degradation. Pollution from transportation is our largest source of global warming emissions (regionally and nationally).
I ask that New York formally join the plan to reduce emissions. The policy must have a strong component of equity by prioritizing clean investments in areas overburdened by pollution and/or for those who don't have access.

I support TCI because lesser fossil fuels coming into Rhode Island will mean cleaner air and better land use around the Port of Providence; tailpipe pollution is adding to asthma and heart disease and costing millions of dollars in extra healthcare costs; traffic congestion around downtown Providence is spewing pollution into the neighborhoods; cleaning up port operations will help clean up the air in Providence communities; public transportation will help reduce our traffic congestion and give me more time to other things, like study and be a better medical student and future doctor; cleaner vehicles will benefit us all; electric vehicles are better for the climate, our local environment, and our economy; better public transportation will help more people access more jobs and basic services; we all need more mobility options, and we should be able to get around our communities without needing to own a car.

Instead of getting into tangles about where to allocate the revenues, consider returning an equal amount to every citizen, clearly labeled so recipients know what it is - similar to the proposed federal Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (HR763). That could increase public/political support for stricter cap levels, and lower-income people would receive a dividend that would be a greater percent of their total income.

I hope that my state of New Hampshire and all the states of the northeast will develop and participate in a strong regional transportation plan that will sharply reduce emissions. I appreciate this bipartisan effort.

We need clean transportation options to serve our people and protect our environment.

Connecticut's winter this year wasn't really winter was it? In fact yesterday in February it hit 64 degrees, this is alarming and is testament to the fact that we need to address Climate Change immediately.