TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

My name is Chris D'Agostino, and I am a recent college graduate from Brandeis University. I care deeply about the issue of climate change because as a young person, I will live to see its increasingly harmful consequences. I would like to see a policy with a high, steadily increasing price that fully compensates rural and low/moderate income earners for any rising costs. With a federal government apathetic to the issue of climate change, it is essential that states move aggressively to reduce emissions in a socially equitable manner. Thank you for your time.

please design a regional low-carbon transportation policy proposal that would cap and reduce carbon emissions from the combustion of transportation fuels through a cap-and-invest program or other pricing mechanism… [and]… to complete the policy development process within one year, after which each jurisdiction will decide whether to adopt and implement the policy.

I would like to submit the following comments for the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI).

Studies have shown that employer paid subsidies, for employee transit costs, increases employee transit ridership. When the DEC moved to downtown Albany an Upstate Transit (Saratoga County bus service) transit subsidy program was offered. About 20% of the people who lived in the Upstate Transit service area participated and took the bus to work.

The IRS rules for employer paid transit subsidies have changed. It appears that employer paid transit subsidies are exempt from employer payroll taxes and are not taxable as income for the employee. Consideration should be given to the following:
1) engaging employers to encourage employer paid transit subsidies,
2) a statewide regulation, like NY City, Washington, DC, and San Francisco, who all have requirements for employers of a certain size to provide transit subsidies to their employees,
3) providing state tax benefits to employers who provide transit benefits, telecommuting and carpool and bicycling incentives.

Create a credit system, which allows tradable credits, for companies or organizations that provide employee commuter benefits such as transit subsidies, telecommuting, vanpooling and also housing cost assistance to employees that live close to work. Location efficiency mortgages (LEMs) provide mortgage assistance to people who live near transit lines and have lower automobile costs, if any. LEMs and employer grants for living near work have been offered in the Capital District. When people live close to work and other amenities, vehicular pollution is reduced. Any company or organization could also get credits if they contribute to a transit fund that would help pay for transit passes for low income individuals. There are models for calculating emissions reductions for transportation demand management strategies.

Engage with California and all California emissions standards states for the following proposals:
1) All new vehicles should have idle-stop technology,
2) credits should be allowed for conventional hybrids. Many people do not have the ability to have home-charging for plug-in EVs, so they can only own conventional hybrids which are less polluting then gasoline or diesel vehicles.
3) Increase credits for plug-in hybrids. Most people will not buy a battery electric vehicle due to the limited battery range. Americans drive less than 40 miles per day on average. Plug-in hybrids, with a 50 mile electric range, will therefore be almost completely electric for the majority of trips each day.

Explore the possibility of biofuel from industrial hemp which is not a food crop and is now legal to grow in the US. The irrigation, pesticide, herbicide and fertilizer needs of industrial hemp are minimal. Such a biofuel comes close to carbon neutrality.

Institute a small tax on parking and direct that money toward subsidizing transit passes and improving transit systems. The tax could be added to private parking facilities and would work like hotel occupancy taxes or utility taxes for energy conservation purposes. Companies that offer free parking to their employees could be taxed on the value of their parking spaces. This would encourage employers to charge for parking which would encourage transit usage and carpooling.

There has been a significant increase in truck delivery traffic due to increased internet purchases. Institute a tax on internet purchase deliveries and direct that money to the same transit fund that is funded by parking taxes.

Transit bus systems need to have more express services, both intraurban and suburbs to city service. The ridership on the express buses on Central Ave in the Capital District has proven the need for more express service. Non-express bus lines in the Capital District have too many stops, which slows down service. In NY City, bus stops are spaced to at least two blocks distance. There also needs to be increased service between the suburbs and downtown businesses in upstate cities. In the Capital District, the highest volume of daily commuters is from Saratoga County to downtown Albany.

We need to take action to turn this climate emergency around now. I hope that it takes place responsibly and that we purchase batteries for electric vehicles from companies who purchase minerals such lithium via fair trade so that countries such as Bolivia and the continent of Africa do not get exploited in the process.

I am extremely opposed to any additional gas tax for MA residents!! This state is becoming exceptionally unappealing and unaffordable to live in for the citizens of MA.

I moved to the wonderful, tax free state of New Hampshire in 2011...Lived in taxachusetts for 53 years...payed my fair share in taxes to Massachusetts. Thankfully I was able to get out...will never move back and I do my best not to spend any of my retirement or 401k $$$ in Massachusetts.
This proposal is nothing more than a money grab of the working class to support the non-working class who are able to work but choose not to.

This email is to advise you that I wish to add my voice to those opposed to Governor Baker's proposed executive order to impose a stealth gas tax hike through the Transportation Climate Initiative. Bay Staters do not need a faceless bureaucracy in a distant state imposing at will what unelected bureaucrats alone deem is appropriate. Massachusetts already has a very high cost-of-living along with some of the highest (clean) energy costs in the nation.

Please reject TCI. Don't make Massachusetts even less affordable while trading our autonomy for little gain.

Margarethe Daly

I support TCI because transportation is the largest source of carbon emissions in my state and we have to act now to fight the climate crisis; because the current status quo concentrates emissions and health complications in already overburdened communities; and because building these new transportation solutions will be a huge investment in the economy, following in the footsteps of New Deal style policy!

Than you for your consideration.