Speaker 5: Thank you. Docket 1044. Councilors Flynn and O'Malley are for the following order for hearing to discuss investments in electric vehicle charging infrastructure and electrifying the City of Options vehicle fleet.
Speaker 6: Thank you. The chair recognizes Councilor Flynn. Councilor Flynn, you have the floor.
Speaker 0: Thank you. President. Thank you for Councilor O'Malley. For partnering with me on this important hearing. Hearing order. Councilor O'Malley and Mayor Janey and Mayor Walsh just finished the. Berto 2.0. And I know the city and residents are better off for them. That strong leadership. This is this is about the electric cars coming into into Boston. We have the potential Ford and GM are announcing that 40% of cars over the next 15 to 20 years will be electric vehicles. The Biden administration has proposed $8 billion in infrastructure improvements for electric all electric vehicle charging station. Throughout the country. Additionally, they're also offering a $12,000 tax credit for people that buy an electric vehicle. That's where our city is headed. That's where our our country is headed. And it's a tremendous way for us to make sure that our cities and towns and. Communities across the country are safe and healthy for all residents. We have had major pollution, air pollution throughout throughout the history of our city. In my neighborhood in south Boston, certainly the Boston Edison has been a major, major polluter in the in the city and and in the region. South Boston had the highest rate of lupus discovered derma. In other types of cancers, especially impacting woman. My father's aunt lived on Arcadia Street, and when you would put the sheets out to dry, you would wake up the next morning and you'd see the beautiful white sheets would be turned completely brown from those smoke that was coming from the Boston Edison plan. Counsel knows this issue very well as well. The other issue I wanted to highlight was in Chinatown. This neighborhood has the highest rate of. Asthma of any neighborhood literally in the country it's located. As you all know, next to 93. It's located right underneath the Mass Pike. It's located just a short walk from the Amtrak station, from the bus station and the busses. Those are those that pollution continues all night. So what we're trying to do is to make the state, the city cleaner and healthier and having a robust discussion on what the city possibly can do to improve infrastructure for electric vehicle charging station would go a long way to protecting our environment, protecting our health, providing our children with a better and healthier environment to live, to work, and to and to play. So I'm proud to partner with Counsel O'Malley, who's done a tremendous job as a city councilor working on environmental issues. And I also want to acknowledge my staff that have helped me write this this proposal as well. Thank you, Madam President.
Speaker 6: Thank you, Councilor Flynn. The chair now recognizes the cosponsor. President O'Malley. President O'Malley, you have the floor.
Speaker 3: Thank you very.
Speaker 0: Much, Madam Chair, for this microphone.
Speaker 3: Perfect. Thank you very much. Obviously, I want to begin by thanking Councilor Flynn. Councilor Flynn and his team did all the work going into this resolution, and they were kind enough to ask me to partner. And I'm just incredibly delighted and grateful for this opportunity because as was noted in the President's infrastructure bill, which I am very hopeful will pass and will pass soon, we're looking at close to $8 billion. It's going to go down to our cities and to our states to build this renewable, renewable infrastructure. Now, I'm old enough to remember when you couldn't find any EV charging stations, and then I think three showed up or four showed up on Cambridge Street , and it was a godsend. And I and I know I know at least a quarter of this body owns and drives electric vehicles. It's it's what's needed. And we need to encourage opportunities for more folks to buy them. What's the one expression? And I know there are a lot of them that I'm like a broken record repeating, but every fiscal conservative ought to be an environmentalist because my Chevy bolts through state rebates cost a heck of a lot less than a car that cost a lot. Had a smaller sticker price. Obviously, I don't pay for gas. I don't pay for a lot of the maintenance and wear and tear and electricity because of community choice. Energy is actually cheaper in Boston than it was a year ago, so it makes financial sense to invest in this. It is obviously important to protect our planet, to invest in this. And this is great leadership that I know, Councilor Flynn and many of you will be continuing in the next year. But it's really important that the city has this conversation now and works with the next administration to make sure that we can access those funds to build this out. The number one prohibition for an individual for buying an electric car isn't the cost, because, again, they're state rebates that will save you money. You're going to pay a lot less for an electric car now than you would for a similarly priced car or even a less expensive less a more expensive car you're going to pay less for. I think I may have got that wrong, but there's also sort of, you know, many of us don't have an opportunity to charge our cars at home. So this is a huge opportunity, right for the planet, right for your wallet. It's the right thing to do. So thank you, Councilor Flynn, and thank you, colleagues.
Speaker 6: Thank you, Councilman O'Malley, the chair recognizes Counselor Arroyo.
Speaker 3: Thank you, Madam Chair. Thanks to the Makers for this. I am one of the one of the councilors who owns an electric vehicle, so I was not necessarily surprised, but disappointed that there isn't an electric charging station in all of high park, all of them out of hand. I don't believe there's any Rosindell either, but I might be wrong on that one. In terms of increasing the existing infrastructure, that's great and I love that we're having that conversation. One of the things I hope we can also either tie on to this conversation or have a further conversation on is we have a school bus fleet that should be electrified. That's that's a possibility. Now they make electric school busses. That's something that should be done. My father was on the council when he was pushing vestibule vehicles because that was a thing. And, you know, I think this is something folks don't recognize necessarily the impact that our bussing infrastructure, our school busses, our meter busses, our city vehicle fleet, if we move that towards clean energy, what a difference that would make for air quality and air pollution. And so this is something that I hope to see us moving on as more of these things become available. And we have this hopefully I share your optimism that we have an infrastructure bill that we can use specifically for this purpose, because this meets many, many goals that we have as a city and as a country. So thank to the makers for doing this and hopefully we make some real strides on this. Thank you.
Speaker 6: So you'd like to be added as.
Speaker 3: A yes, please. Thank you.
Speaker 6: The chair recognizes Councilor Flaherty.
Speaker 0: Geographically, said My name is.
Speaker 6: The chair recognizes control.
Speaker 4: Thank you, Madam Chair. Please add my name as well. I was.
Speaker 6: I I'm glad Councilor Royal spoke because I was going to throw him under the.
Speaker 4: Electric bus because.
Speaker 6: I wanted just to make two notes. One, that in addition to electrifying.
Speaker 4: Our vehicle fleet, we have to think.
Speaker 6: About all the infrastructure impacts in terms of the with this building and all the parking and storage is wired. And so he has been as a as an electric vehicle driver as well. He has been I've.
Speaker 4: Been trying to fend off his entreaty to switch spots because.
Speaker 6: I've one near the plug in the.
Speaker 4: Garage downstairs. And the other point that I just want to make sure.
Speaker 6: If possible, for the sponsors to add to this is I'm hearing a lot from tenants in.
Speaker 4: Larger buildings that as new buildings are being built, the requirements now.
Speaker 6: For just a small percentage of the spots to have.
Speaker 4: Capacity for charging is now not even.
Speaker 6: Enough. So it's time to update those as well. So thank you.
Speaker 4: Both for your leadership and really excited to see this move forward. Thank you.
Speaker 6: Would anyone else like to speak to this matter? Would anyone like to add their name? Councilor. Royal Council of Baker. Councilor Bach. Councilor Campbell. Councilor Edwards. Councilor Szabo, George Councilor me here. Councilor Woo and please add my name. Thank you. This docket 1044 will be referred to the Committee on Environment Resiliency in parts.
Speaker 3: Thank you very much, Madam Chair, for taking over. Madam Quirk, would you now please read docket 1045?
Speaker 5: Thank you. Docket 1045. Counselor Campbell offer the following order for a hearing regarding emergency housing transfers for those facing community based violence.
Order for a hearing to discuss investments in electric vehicle charging infrastructure & electrifying the City of Boston's vehicle fleet.