TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

We Mainers simply can not afford another rise in taxes, let alone in the area that we utilize the absolute most here in central Maine! Being a disabled, full time care taker for my 3 grandchildren, we are always on a very tight budget. One of our children is an autistic child that requires we keep the house quite warm and has appts very often that require us to drive frequently. We absolutely could not afford to provide the special accommodations that we do for him of the taxes are passed. We would literally have to make cuts on things like groceries, medications etc in order to survive. This proposal would not benefit anyone other than the people of Portland-

It is critical that we decarbonize transportation as quickly as possible as a state, region, nation and world. Please pass the Transportation and Climate Initiative for Vermont and the region! In rural areas people depend on their cars. I have been fortunate to drive an electric car for the last couple of years and will never go back. A small tax on gas when prices are low is a small price to pay to make progress on decarbonizing transportation and providing more public transportation options for all.

As an environmental educator and field biologist, a parent, and a resident of Cortlandt Manor who cares deeply about the health of our planet and all its inhabitants, I support the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI).

Transportation is the number one source of climate pollution in the United States. That means it is time to totally reimagine the way that we transport people and goods. We need a plan that holds large transportation polluters accountable for the pollution they create and invests in clean transportation solutions including:
-More public transit and electric vehicle infrastructure in rural areas
-Expansion of commuter rail, electric vehicles, and streets in the suburbs that are safe, walkable, and bikeable
-Sustainable and equitable housing near transit and electric bus fleets in urban communities

New York State has already been involved in the multi-state, successful RGGI program and TCI seems like a logical next step. We must commit to all the actions reducing greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible while making people's lives as easy as possible during the transition to renewable energy. TCI appears to be a program that could achieve these goals. I urge you to adopt this program.

Please see attached for Agility Fuel Solutions' comments on the draft framework.

This is outrageous. Only Ma. house of representatives can legislate a tax. Calling what is a tax is a fee, that is phony baloney. The people of Ma made clear a few years ago, WE DO NOT WANT A GAS TAX. Stop trying to pick our pockets with your over the top fear mongering re: global warming/climate change. We've had climate change for thousands of years and you're trying to destroy our economy and especially hurt the poor with your stupid policies. warren nickerson

AMERICAN PEOPLE SHOULD NOT BE PUNISHED TO TRY THERE CARS AND TRUCKS. PRICES ARE WHY OUT OF CONTROLL NOW AND WE CANT SURVIVE THIS WAY.

I support this initiative and would like as many states as possible to participate in it. We need to green our transportation infrastructure not only to combat climate change, but also to future-proof our transportation systems as technology evolves and fossil fuels become antiquated.

TCI allows a small rural state like Vermont to benefit in several ways.

Reducing GHG - a global problem that Vermonters care about and want addressed - can not be done state by state and especially by states as small as Vermont. Combining the markets and regulatory power of several states will mean real progress and be a model for other parts of the country.

TCI - while bringing much needed funding to transportation programs - will be tailored to an individual state's needs. For Vermont this might mean rural transit, ride share, and EV programs and making sure rural residents that have to drive long distances to access, jobs, food, school and other services be treated equitably.

Any direct economic effect of a market based solution will fall outside the state's borders. There is no drilling or refining in VT and region wide distribution systems are for the most part outside of the state. Estimates of the affects at the VT pump are highly variable yet fall well within the range of gas price fluctuations over the last decade as state officials explained at recent public forums.

It may be that if the rest of the region's large states participate and Vermont, a relatively tiny market, doesn't the price at VT pumps may still go up given regional energy markets. Meanwhile the state will fail to reap transportation funding benefits.

Finally RGGI has been a success for the state. Important low income weatherization programs have benefited. TCI is following a similar model. Like RGGI there would be much to be gained and little to lose if the state participates.