Let Drivers Buy "Carbon Offset" Carpool Lane Passes Says Not-So-Tongue-in-Cheek Lawmaker

We've never been a fan of the move by various states, our own California chief among them, to promote clean-car use by offering single-occupancy carpool lane stickers to a variety of hybrids and natural gas vehicles.

After all, if carpool lanes are there to help reduce traffic congestion, adding a bunch of solo-occupant cars and trucks isn't going to help -- it just clogs up the carpool lanes.

And if  emissions are  the big concern, we ought to change the name of the lanes from "carpool"  to "clean air," or perhaps add special "blue skies" lanes to accommodate all those hybrid drivers who managed to get stickers before the allotted supply ran out.

(Disclosure: Most days we drive a natural-gas fueled Honda Civic GX that happily flaunts its green car credentials via a state-approved single-occupancy carpool sticker. We usually have a carpooling passenger anyhow, but we take full advantage of the sticker on days when we don't.)

But not even our dislike of the perk made this latest bit of political bombast easier to swallow.

A California state legislator, Sen. Jim Battin, is trying to prove a point by introducing a very real bill  (although we're betting that it has the proverbial snowball's chance of passage) to let drivers of all types of motor vehicles obtain the state's clean air carpool passes by simply purchasing annual carbon offset credits for the vehicles.

That would let the owner of a 15-mile-per-gallon, four-wheel drive, 2008 Chevy Tahoe get a single-occupant carpool sticker by paying $99 to San Francisco-based TerraPass or one of the other "carbon neutral" groups that promises to plant trees or support other carbon-offsetting ventures with the money.

Battin, a conservative Republican from La Quinta, a desert community near Palm Springs that is best known for its tony golf resort, said he paid $45 to "neutralize" the Lincoln Aviator crossover SUV he drives (and the state pays for).

He introduced his measure last week after a Northern California newspaper criticized legislators who drove "polluting, flashy, fuel-sucking" cars.

In a caustic press release announcing his bill, Battin said the measure would "encourage every owner of a polluting, flashy, fuel-sucking car to buy their way into an environmentally conscious 'carbon neutral' lifestyle."

Even though we think he's being a donkey's rear about it, we couldn't help but chuckle while reading Battin's announcement. Read in isolation from its intent, it is a pretty funny, if outrageous, bit of politicking.

Battin was out to lunch when we called his office, but his chief legislative director, Mark Reeder, said the senator "is having a lot of fun" with the uproar over his measure.

Reeder agreed that Battin introduced the bill as a piece of political theater, but insisted that his boss intends to push it through the legislative process as far as it will go.

To that end, he said, Battin is now soliciting other legislators to sign on as co-authors (it will be interesting to see how many, if any, do so).

Reeder laughed loudly and declined to comment when asked if Battin would be happy if a miracle happened and his bill was approved and signed into law. Then, after pausing, he said Battin "probably would" enjoy being able to drive solo in his Aviator in the carpoool lanes.

California has a 30-day waiting period until a newly introduced bill can be heard by the appropriate committee, and Battin's bill is so new it hasn't received a committee assignment yet, but we'll let you know what happens as it starts wending its way though the process.

We saw the release on the Sacramento Bee newspaper's subscription-only "Capitol Alert" site, so for the edification of Green Car Advisor readers who don't subscribe and don't want to, here's a copy.

Remember, as you read, from here down the prose is all from Battin's office:

……………………….

SACRAMENTO – Senator Jim Battin (R- La Quinta) announced today legislation that would encourage every owner of a polluting, flashy, fuel sucking car to buy their way into an environmentally conscious "carbon neutral" lifestyle.

SB 1374 would allow auto owners who purchase carbon credits that offset the carbon dioxide emissions of their vehicles to participate in the Clean Air - High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) decal program, allowing the driver to use an HOV lane.

This program currently only applies to the first 88,000 vehicles meeting enhanced California and Federal emission standards. Under Battin's proposed law, carbon neutral vehicles can also participate in the decal program. Battin sees SB 1374 as a perfect opportunity to jump start the state's efforts to single-handedly stop the fractionally small rise in global temperature.

On February 28, the California State Air Resources Board (CARB) is scheduled to consider under its AB 32 implementation plan how voluntary early actions can start saving the planet. "I can’t think of a better way to become a true champion of the environment and reduce your carbon foot print than by going 'carbon neutral' with your car," stated Battin.

Battin himself decided to go "carbon neutral" immediately after he was scolded by the Contra Costa Times article that read, "Lawmakers' flashy, fuel-sucking cars on road at the expense of taxpayers."

 "I was embarrassingly caught using excess energy. The only thing I could do was take action," Battin declared. Battin immediately purchased for $45 a DriveNeutral Certificate which simply states that his CO2 emissions have been offset for one year. The obvious next question is if he has gone "green" and is "carbon neutral" why shouldn'’t he and other environmentally conscious drivers have the same rights as low-emission drivers and live the HOV lane good life?

This proposal should complement CARB’s efforts. Through the DriveNeutral "CO2" Calculator or any of the dozens of other "carbon calculators" one can calculate that a 2007 Toyota Prius emits 4,229 pounds of dirty carbon per year making the Prius a worse foe to the environment than Senator Battin's carbon-free Lincoln Aviator. Through LiveNeutral, or any of the dozens of other carbon credit vendors, it would cost only $15 to eliminate this Prius polluter's carbon footprint.

Battin added, "The guilt of my excess energy-using days is a thing of the past - I feel great about my carbon credit indulgence and think many other Californians will, too when they are driving guilt-free in the empty diamond lane."

Posted by

John O'Dell February 27, 2008, 2:55 PM

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