SPOKANE — Transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions represent about 35% of overall emissions from Washington state government agencies.
With the state’s push for residents to buy electric vehicles, some Washingtonians wonder why they should drop tens of thousands of dollars on an electric vehicle to help the planet when many of the police enforcing the laws of the road still drive gas-powered SUVs, pickups and sedans.
The state plans to swap out 100% of Washington’s gas-powered government vehicle fleets for electric vehicles by 2040 with the help of a new state group called the Electric Vehicle Coordinating Council.
In November 2021, Gov. Jay Inslee issued an executive order that mandated state cabinet agencies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
The order outlined incremental goals state agencies should hit to transition entirely to battery-electric vehicles by the year 2040.
On Wednesday, the Electric Vehicle Coordinating Council met for its monthly meeting. In it, representatives from several state agencies talked over multiple items of business, including Inslee’s executive order.
Hanna Waterstrat, director of the state Department of Commerce’s Office of State Efficiency and Environmental Performance, presented on the state’s fleet vehicle electrification process.
The state’s goal is to swap at least 40% of its light-duty fleet vehicles such as sedans, SUVs and light trucks for battery-electric vehicles by 2025. By 2030, the state plans to have 75% of its light-duty fleet vehicles running on battery-electric power. And by 2035, the target is for 100% of light-duty fleets to be electric vehicles.
The state’s targets for medium- and heavy-duty fleet vary based on the classes of vehicles. The goal is to have totally electric medium- and heavy-duty fleets by 2040.
Washington state’s cabinet fleet is made up of roughly 10,000 vehicles; 4,000 of those are leased to other agencies. As of Sept. 19, 20% of all the state’s light-duty fleets were electric vehicles. That percentage is double what it was one year ago, Waterstrat said.
The state recently bought another 39 battery-electric vehicles that will soon arrive to vehicle fleets, Waterstrat added.
“We’re expecting that about 40 to 50% of new and replacement light-duty vehicles ordered over the next year will be battery-electric,” Waterstrat said. “Agencies that are currently meeting or exceeding the 2025 target of 40% electric vehicles deserve some kudos here.”
She went on to list the state agencies that had reportedly met that goal as of this week, including: the Office of the Governor, the Department of Retirement Services, the Department of Commerce, the Liquor and Cannabis Board, and Puget Sound Partnership.
Agencies that wish to buy a gas-powered vehicle must file an exemption request and meet established criteria outlined by the state.
The top three exemption categories the state has approved have to do with vehicle availability, safety and charging infrastructure.
“Vehicle availability has been tough, especially starting out,” Waterstat said. “But things are really improving. “
The safety exemption is used by agencies such as jails and prisons that transport people accused of crimes because those agencies fear stopping to charge an EV might pose a safety threat to the public.
The ecology department has 360 active vehicles in its fleet, ranging from sedans to trucks capable of towing boats.
Roughly 20% of those fleet rigs are electric vehicles — that’s a little more than 50 vehicles, said William Hannah, the risk and budget manager at the state Department of Ecology. The agency expects that percentage to tick up to 28% in the coming months.
“We just hooked our big 26-foot spill response boat up to the Ford Lightning,” Hannah said. “It towed it wonderfully. Mileage is an issue on that one, but the technology for actually towing it is there.”
Ecology department staff have often reported that the electric vehicles in their fleet “exceed expectations,” Hannah said.
But other staffers also have expressed hesitation or concern over the lack of charging infrastructure out there.
“Standardized charging structure would be a huge help in training staff and getting them comfortable to take the EVs on long trips,” Hannah said.
Ellen Dennis’ work is funded in part by members of the Spokane community via the Community Journalism and Civic Engagement Fund. This story can be republished by other organizations for free under a Creative Commons license. For more information on this, please contact our newspaper’s managing editor.
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