Last month, Maddie & Tae band mate Taylor Kerr and her husband Josh finally brought home their “miracle baby,” Leighton Grace, after a 53-day stay in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Leighton was born on January 17, three months earlier than planned, and to celebrate her due date last week, Taylor uploaded a 22-minute video to YouTube to share her complete birth story with fans.
In addition to detailing her lengthy hospital stay and the emotional and scary journey to welcoming her first daughter, Taylor shared the story behind Leighton’s name, which she and Josh hadn’t quite settled on when they checked into the hospital.
“Her middle name is Grace because God’s grace is all over her story, and she’s not even here yet,” Taylor explained from her hospital bed, during a month-long period of bed rest leading up to the birth.
“Josh and I really had a hard time deciding on the name. I fully expected to give birth to her and have to see her and feel her presence to be able to officially name her,” the singer continues. “…But the day we got admitted to the hospital, Josh and I both were like, ‘We need something tangible, to solidify this beautiful little girl.”
They also knew fans were praying for baby Leighton, and “we really wanted people to call her by name when they prayed for her,” Taylor goes on to say. “So we just felt really convicted to name her.”
In music news, Maddie & Tae released their latest album, Through the Madness Vol. 1, in January.
The project came together after Andy Curran, veteran Canadian band Coney Hatch‘s bassist and a longtime musical associate of Lifeson, began working with a young Oregon-based singer-songwriter named Maiah Wynne and asked Alex if he’d lend his guitar talents to a track.
“I sent it over to him, and he was floored,” Curran tells ABC Audio. “He said, ‘Andy, I think we’ve found a diamond in the rough here. This girl is a secret weapon.’ And that was the beginning of it all.”
Envy of None is quite a departure from Rush, with songs influenced by a variety of genres, including alternative rock, synth pop, Euro pop and industrial rock.
Lifeson tells ABC Audio, “I think what connects all of these different styles of music is [Maiah’s] voice. Her voice always sits right on top of what chaos the music is creating.”
The 68-year-old Rock & Roll Hall of Famer says Wynne, 25, basically became his “muse” for the Envy of None project.
“[H]er sensibilities and her skill [are] such that she’s…very, very, very talented at a very early age,” he maintains. “[E]very song [she contributed to] had something that I wasn’t quite expecting.”
The album ends with the introspective instrumental “Western Sunset” that’s dedicated to late Rush drummer Neil Peart, whom Alex calls his “brother…good friend [and] working partner.”
Lifeson says he was inspired to compose the tune while watching the sunset during visits to an ailing Peart at his California home.
“It gives you a chance to catch your breath after listening to all this pretty intense material,” Alex notes of the song, “and just puts you in a very…contemplative mode.”
America‘s Gerry Beckley has debuted a second advance song from his upcoming solo album, Aurora, a tune called “Tickets from the Past” that he co-wrote with his co-founding America band mate Dewey Bunnell, who also sings on the track.
“Tickets from the Past” is the first song that Beckley and Bunnell wrote together that won’t make its debut appearance on an America album. The track is available now via streaming services, and you can check out a video of Gerry and Dewey talking about the song now at Blue Élan Records’ official YouTube channel.
Bunnell says in the clip, “It’s been a pleasure working with Gerry on this solo project of his. It’s a little different from America projects, but very much the same. Been there before, but great song, Ger. I love Aurora, and I love singing on it.”
As previously reported, Aurora will be released on June 17. It’s an 11-song collection that Gerry recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic at his two home studios, in Sydney, Australia, and Venice, California.
The tracks on Aurora include tunes that began as unfinished demos and scratch recordings that date back as far as the early 1970s, as well as brand-new songs written during the past two years.
America currently is on tour in the U.S., and has almost 20 upcoming dates on its 2022 schedule. The band’s next concert is this Friday, April 15, in Houston. Visit VenturaHighway.com for a full list of shows.
Now that the Top 24 has been decided, it’s America’s turn to take the reigns on American Idol.
Sunday’s episode saw half of the contestants being mentored by country star Jimmie Allen, who was a pervious contestant on the show, making it to the Top 40 during season 10, the year Scotty McCreery won. Not only did he serve as mentor, he also treated everyone to a performance of his new song “Down Home.”
Here’s are the contestants who performed and their song selections:
Jay: “I Want You Back” The Jackson 5 Elli Rowe: “Everywhere” Fleetwood Mac Tristen Gressett: “With A Little Help From My Firends” The Beatles/Joe Cocker Scarlet: “Levitating” Dua Lipa Sage: “Jolene” Dolly Parton Danielle Finn: “Your Song” Elton John Mike Parker: “Best Shot” Jimmie Allen Emyrson Flora: “Angels Like You” Miley Cyrus Dan Marshall: “Heaven” Bryan Adams Jacob Moran: “In My Blood” Shawn Mendes HunterGirl: “Banjo” Rascal Flatts Nicolina: “Elastic Heart” Sia
Tonight, the remaining contestants, mentored by pop superstar Bebe Rexha, will take the stage for a chance to win America’s votes.
(CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa) — Police in Iowa are investigating the scene of a nightclub shooting that killed two people and injured 10 others.
Shots broke out Sunday at the Taboo Nightclub and Lounge on Third Street in downtown Cedar Rapids just before 1:30 a.m., according to the Cedar Rapids Police Department.
Cedar Rapids police officers were on routine downtown patrol when the shooting occurred and “were able to respond immediately,” according to the police department.
The two victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while the 10 injured were treated at area hospitals, police said. Their conditions were not released by police.
It is unclear what led to the shooting. Police did not release information on whether the gunman was in custody but announced around 6 a.m. that the scene was secure and there was no threat to public safety.
Investigators are asking that anyone present at the time contact the police department.
ABC News’ Keith Harden contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — It was a chaotic meteorological transition into spring as March saw the highest number of tornadoes in a single month in U.S. history.
At least 218 tornadoes occurred in March, with many of the tornadoes happening toward the end of the month, according to the National Weather Service.
On March 30, eight states in the South and Midwest were under tornado watch.
The severe weather spawned nearly 30 tornadoes and killed two people who were inside mobile homes in Washington County, Florida. Two other people inside one of the destroyed mobile homes were injured, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
A powerful EF-3 twister with winds up to 145 mph tore through Springdale, Arkansas, on March 29, injuring seven people and inflicting heavy damage to an elementary school, the NWS reported.
Earlier in the month, more than 60 tornadoes occurred across five southeastern states. A funnel cloud that caused severe damage over a 2-mile stretch in St. Bernard’s Parish, Louisiana, on March 22 killed one person and hospitalized seven others, St. Bernard’s Parish President Guy McInnis told ABC News.
That tornado was measured to be an EF-3 with winds of at least 130 mph, according to the NWS.
A tornado on March 21 killed a 73-year-old woman and injured 10 others in Grayson County, Texas, said Sarah Somers, the director of the county’s office of emergency management.
On March 5, seven people, including two children under the age of 5, were killed when a powerful EF-3 tornado ripped across central Iowa, Lucas County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Lamb told ABC News.
Up to 30 homes were destroyed in an area just north of Winterset, Iowa, announced Diogenes Ayala, the director of Madison County Emergency Management Agency, during a news conference at the time.
Even more severe weather that could conjure up more tornadoes is expected over the next several days. On Sunday and Monday, tornadoes could pop up in eastern Oklahoma, northeast Texas, southern Missouri and much of Arkansas.
On Tuesday, enhanced risks are also predicted from Iowa to Texas, with damaging winds, hail and strong tornadoes possible. That system will then shift to Arkansas and Louisiana on Wednesday.
ABC News’ Daniel Amarante and Bill Hutchinson contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to the White House, said Americans should continue assessing risk for themselves as COVID-19 cases tick up.
“It’s going to be a person’s decision about the individual risks they’re going to take,” Fauci told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl exclusively on Sunday.
“This is not going to be eradicated and it’s not going to be eliminated,” Fauci said. “So you’re going to make a question and an answer for yourself, for me as an individual, for you as an individual. What is my age? What is my status? Do I have people at home who are vulnerable that if I bring the virus home there may be a problem?”
Dr. Anthony Fauci says Americans should continue assessing risk for themselves as COVID-19 cases rise.
Fauci said that while “there is concern that we are seeing an uptick in cases,” it’s “not unexpected that you’re going to see an uptick when you pull back on the mitigation methods.”
With 21 states now reporting an increase in COVID cases, Fauci said much of the country “is still in that green zone, which means that masking is not recommended in the sense of not required on indoor settings.”
Amid the uptick, the annual Gridiron Club Dinner held last Saturday in Washington was followed by a surge in COVID-19 cases among high-profile attendees.
“Let me ask you about the spike we’ve seen right here in Washington,” Karl said. “You and I were both at the Gridiron Dinner. This is a dinner that had about 600 or so attendees. So far, I believe we’re at 67 people that have tested positive who were at the dinner…What is the lesson here?”
“I think the people who run functions, who run big dinners, who run functions like the White House Correspondents’ ball, or thinking back, the Gridiron Dinner, are going to have to make a determination looking at the CDC guidelines and seeing where the trends are,” Fauci responded.
President Joe Biden didn’t attend the event but has been in contact with multiple prominent lawmakers, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other officials who have recently tested positive or been deemed close contacts of someone who did.
After Pres. Biden attends multiple events with people who later tested positive for COVID-19, White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci tells @jonkarl that “we feel that the protocols around the president are sufficient to protect him.” https://t.co/1a7IjqSxMlpic.twitter.com/4PZZJB1rzx
“What is your level of concern about the president’s exposure here?” Karl asked.
“Well, Jon, the protocols to protect the president are pretty strong,” Fauci said. “The president is vaccinated. He is doubly boosted. He got his fourth shot of an mRNA. When people like myself and my colleagues are in the room with him closely for a considerable period of time — half an hour, 20 minutes, 40 minutes, all of us need to be tested.”
Biden, 79, received his second booster shot last month. Fauci urged those who are eligible to follow the president’s example and said the “best way to mitigate” living with “some degree of virus in the community” is to get vaccinated.
In the meantime, Fauci said, “We’re watching it very, very carefully,” adding that “hopefully we’re not going to see increased severity.”
(GRANTVILLE, Georgia) — A $15,000 reward is being offered in the search for suspects who killed the owners of a Georgia shooting range and their teen grandson during an apparent robbery in which at least 40 guns were taken, authorities said.
The triple homicide occurred at the Lock, Stock and Barrel Shooting Range in Grantville, about 50 miles southwest of Atlanta. The bodies were discovered on Friday night by Coweta County coroner Richard Hawk, the son of the slain shooting-range owners and the father of the teenager who was gunned down, police said.
“I’ve been here eight years and we’ve never had anything like this,” Grantville police Chief Steve Whitlock told ABC affiliate station WSB-TV in Atlanta. “Right now, I’m just speechless. I have a hard time talking about it because they were friends of ours. I’ve known them for a long time.”
Police identified the victims as 75-year-old Thomas Richard Hawk Sr., his 75-year-old wife, Evelyn Hawk, and their 17-year-old grandson, Luke Hawk.
Investigators suspect the killings unfolded between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday during an apparent armed robbery, according to a statement from the Grantville Police Department.
Richard Hawk went to the shooting range around 8 p.m. on Friday, discovered the bodies and called 911, police said.
In addition to the arsenal of guns stolen, the business’ security camera was also taken from the scene, police said.
Grantville police officials asked anyone who drove passed the gun range around the time of the killings to contact investigators and relay any information on what they saw, specifically what type of vehicles were parked outside.
The federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting in the investigation. The Lock, Stock and Barrel Shooting range is a federal firearms licensee in Grantville, officials said.
The ATF joined the City of Grantville and the Georgia and the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms industry, in announcing a combined reward of up to $15,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the killings.
“ATF and our law enforcement partners will work tirelessly to bring the killer(s) to justice,” Benjamin Gibbons, special agent in charge of the Atlanta ATF field division, said in a statement. “The brutality of these senseless murders along with the fact that these killer(s) have acquired additional firearms make solving this case our top priority.”
The killings have rocked Grantville, the town of about 3,000 residents where Thomas and Evelyn Hawk lived for more than 30 years and were well-known in the community, according to friends.
“Tommy would do anything for anybody. It’s just a nice family. It’s been really hard,” said Whitlock, adding that he last spoke to the couple on Tuesday when he visited the shooting range.
The family was well known in the Coweta County community and investigators are still trying to piece together what led up to the shooting. https://t.co/NS9YZBgi5a
Coweta County Sheriff Lenn Wood said he was also close to the Hawk family and posted a heartfelt condolence letter on the Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, saying, the Coweta County Community is “forever broken and changed by the senseless and tragic event that happened in Grantville.”
“Family was taken from the Hawk family, and us, way too soon and we are left with hurt, pain, and very little answers,” Wood wrote. “I am a life-long member of Coweta and every family, especially the Hawk family, are a valuable and precious part of my life. My heart is hurting and my prayers to our God is that He is ever present right now with Richard and his family; providing peace, strength and overwhelming love from God and our community.”
Wood added, “I am also fervently praying that God will use our law enforcement community and the Coweta Community to bring justice swiftly.”
(NEW YORK) — When Jace Dulohery started school at Oklahoma Christian University in 2020, no one knew he was transgender. He had already begun to medically and socially transition, and no one questioned him living in male housing his freshman year.
However, when he opened up to a resident assistant about being trans that year, the information made its way up the administrative ladder at the school, which is affiliated with the Churches of Christ.
Eventually, he said he was forced to live in private housing.
“There’s just no room for a normal college experience when there’s actual discrimination happening,” Dulohery told ABC News. “This is not Christian behavior. This is not loving. This is not merciful. This is not compassionate. This is not of God. This is harmful.”
Dulohery filed a Title IX complaint about the decision to move his housing, and a Title IX panel agreed that his housing had been moved due to his gender identity. It also found that he was denied entry into a male-only social club for being transgender.
However, nothing has been resolved, Dulohery said. Instead, he said the school offered to pay for therapy.
Dulohery said the university’s legal team cited the religious exemption to Title IX, a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination, as the basis for its actions. It’s just one way that he says the school has become increasingly hostile against LGBTQ people on campus.
He, other LGBTQ students and allies hope that the ongoing national debate about LGBTQ discrimination in education can push their movement forward and put an end to Title IX’s religious exemption.
Advocates say the exemption claimed by Oklahoma Christian in certain circumstances, and which is claimed by more than 100 other universities, allows schools to partake in legalized discrimination against LGBTQ people, even while federal law otherwise prohibits it.
They also say that the exemptions reinforce a particular view of Christianity that they say is not reflective of the faith as a whole.
‘Legal discrimination’
Title IX and the regulations that implement it state that religious institutions do not have to abide by the law if it would be inconsistent with the organization’s religious beliefs, according to the U.S. Department of Education. This is true even if the school has taxpayer funding.
Schools don’t have to apply for an exemption, however, however, a written claim or “request” can be submitted for assurance that the exemption will be legal and acknowledged by the DOE, according to the department. They must comply with Title IX otherwise, except for the aspects that are explicitly prohibited by their religious beliefs.
The agency can deny a school’s claim if it doesn’t believe its actions are within the religious tenets. Even if a school has a religious exemption, students can still file complaints against schools for discrimination, the education department said.
Dulohery says that the exemption allows “legal discrimination” against LGBTQ people.
There are more than 100,000 LGBTQ students attending religious colleges and universities across the U.S., according to the LGBTQ advocacy group the Religious Exemption Accountability Project (REAP).
Oklahoma Christian has submitted a request for assurance of religious exemption under certain conditions more than once, according to the documents on the Department of Education website.
The school also filed a notice of religious exemptions for certain policies, such as housing and admissions, after the DOE clarified transgender people are protected by Title IX in 2014. Both were granted.
The letter listed passages from the Old and New testaments interpreted to be against homosexuality or transgender identities. Churches of Christ is a set of autonomous organizations that share similar beliefs about Christianity.
“Universally, Churches of Christ believe that all sexual relations outside of a heterosexual marriage covenant, are sin,” read the 2014 letter to the Department of Education from university President John deSteiguer.
“Churches of Christ would oppose a person’s attempt to modify his or her birth sex and present as a sex other than his or her original birth sex, and we’ll consider one who does so misguided and a disruptive presence,” deSteiguer stated.
OC does not explicitly ban LGBTQ students from attending.
Other alleged instances at Oklahoma Christian
Dulohery’s complaint is not the only instance of alleged discrimination described by students, faculty and alumni interviewed by ABC News.
At least one faculty member and one staff member say they have been fired or resigned for supporting the LGBTQ community in some fashion.
Michael O’Keefe, who was a tenured art professor at the university for about 40 years was fired after inviting a gay man, former OC professor and alumnus Scott Hale, to speak to his class in an annual speaker series.
Hale spoke about religious trauma and growing up as a gay man, according to O’Keefe, Hale and students.
He gave a trigger warning before the talk and told students they could leave at any time if they felt uncomfortable, both Hale and O’Keefe said.
O’Keefe told ABC News no students complained to him about the lecture and that he was fired less than a week after the speech.
Oklahoma Christian University declined ABC News’ request for comment on O’Keefe’s and Dulohery’s allegations.
However, in a memo to staff about O’Keefe’s firing given to ABC News, the school stated: “The employment termination process was prompted by multiple complaints from eyewitnesses or others aware of the inappropriate and graphic language of a sexual nature, and stories shared in O’Keefe’s class.”
The memo continued, “Some of the speaker’s remarks included telling the class about his history of exposing his genitals to others.”
In the letter, the university said the decision was not based on Hale’s sexual orientation.
O’Keefe and Hale both denied this to ABC News, saying that the “exposing his genitals” anecdote was taken out of context, and the speaker was discussing an incident when he was 10 years old at a slumber party. Both men said they believe O’Keefe was fired because Hale is a gay man.
O’Keefe is considering filing an appeal over his firing with the university.
A wider reckoning
The calls for change at OC are not an anomaly.
Students at Christian schools across the country recently filed a class-action suit against the U.S. Department of Education for alleged discrimination they say they have experienced as a result of religious exemptions.
The lawsuit, filed in Oregon federal court in March 2021, aims to “put an end to the U.S. Department of Education’s complicity in the abuses and unsafe conditions thousands of LGBTQ+ students endure at hundreds of taxpayer-funded, religious colleges and universities.”
The Religious Exemption Accountability Project is behind the lawsuit.
It states that if plaintiffs win, the DOE would have to treat Title IX complaints from sexual and gender minorities at religious universities with taxpayer funding in the same manner as it does with complaints from non-religious colleges.
Its director, Paul Southwick, says it’s been a long time coming for this anger to reach a boiling point in places like OC.
“There is a significant human cost to religious exemptions,” Southwick said. “Exemptions essentially mean that no matter how great the harm is that you commit, there is no accountability for it.”
Although the DOE is the named defendant, students seeking to be part of the class action describe alleged discriminatory treatment at various Christian universities.
The lawsuit represents 33 LGBTQ students and alumni from various religious colleges and universities from across the country.
“What we see is LGBTQ+ students being sent into conversion therapy,” Southwick said. “We see students expelled, disciplined, stripped of leadership positions. We see pervasive harassment that goes unchecked” at some Christian universities.
He continued, “We see students who experience sexual assault unable to report that assault if it involves someone of the same sex or would reveal their gender identity. Because they could then be disciplined for that in the course of reporting an assault” in some cases.
The Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, an organization of evangelical Christian institutions, denounced the lawsuit as an infringement on religious freedoms.
“The Title IX religious exemption has proven indispensable as contemporary notions of sexuality and gender depart, often substantially, from the religious beliefs that animate every aspect of Christian campus life,” said the CCCU in a court filing to join the litigation as a defendant, since the group would be affected by the outcome.
It continued, “Removing Title IX’s religious exemption, as applied to LGBT students or otherwise, will deprive religious colleges of the oxygen that gives them life by forbidding them, on pain of losing federal assistance for their students, from teaching and expecting adherence to their core religious beliefs.”
In June 2021, the Justice Department wrote in a court filing that it would defend the DOE and the exemption. Several motions to dismiss the case have been filed.
The DOE declined ABC News’ request for comment and pointed to the DOJ’s response.
Promise to ‘end the misuse’ of exemptions
The Biden administration made a campaign promise to “end the misuse of broad exemptions to discriminate,” according to his campaign website. Those against Title IX exemptions have applauded Biden and have used it as momentum for their cause.In 2021, the DOE clarified that Title IX covers discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
“There has been this work to try to say: to be religious, to be Christian is to be anti-LGBTQ,” said Ross Murray, a deacon and vice president of LGBTQ media watchdog GLAAD Media Institute.
He continued, “They wanted to claim a generic Christianity that they can use and mold to reinforce the existing biases and prejudices and help to bolster their discrimination.”
As OC students and faculty continue to work toward addressing allegations of discrimination on their own campus, the effort nationwide against anti-LGBTQ sentiment continues.
They say accountability will save the lives of LGBTQ students, who suffer under such policies.
“People have always been mad about the way the school has been treating them. And now inside and outside ears are listening,” Dulohery said. He said plans are in the works for in-person action against the school from students and allies alike.
“We’re gaining attention. We’re gaining traction… I really just hope they see the consequences of their actions.”
(NEW YORK) — Last month, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a climate change legislative package that included a goal to have every passenger car registered or sold in the state be an electric vehicle starting in 2030.
Other states may be following Washington’s lead.
Rhode Island introduced a bill last month that also set a 2030 goal for 100% EV registrations in the state. Lawmakers in Hawaii previously introduced a bill that would mandate new model vehicle registrations be EVs starting in 2030.
Environmental experts told ABC News that while Washington and other states that set the 2030 registration deadline face uphill battles, including creating a strong charging infrastructure, their legislative moves could have a major impact on the rollout of EVs in the country.
“It’s aggressive but it’s OK to have aggressive goals to move the market,” Gregory A. Keoleian, a professor at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability and director of the Center for Sustainable Systems, told ABC News.
Washington state’s bill, which was signed on March 25, set a goal to make “all publicly owned and privately owned passenger and light duty vehicles of model year 2030 or later … an EV by 2030.” The 2021 version of the bill originally proposed mandating all new registrations starting in 2030 be an EV, however, that was changed during the current session.
An interagency state committee is tasked with completing a report by the end of 2023 to lay out concrete plans on what the state has to do to meet the deadline.
Keoleian acknowledged that Washington’s proposal still has a way to go, but it is similar to other state environmental laws that have contributed to carbon footprint reductions.
Specifically, he likened the EV goal to state-issued renewable portfolio standards, which gave utilities a deadline to provide a percentage of their energy from renewal sources.
Thirty-one states have renewable portfolio standards in place and “half of all growth in U.S. renewable electricity generation and capacity since 2000,” has been associated with those policies, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Keoleain said Washington’s 2030 EV registration goal will make it an easier sell for car manufacturers, charging companies, car dealers and other parties to increase their EV output.
“Having the states set policies that are going to ensure sales are going to be electric will be important for the industry making the vehicles. You’ve got to create a market in order for [automakers] to get moving,” he said.
Last year, General Motors announced it would only sell EVs by 2035 and Ford announced at least 40% of its lineup will be EVs. Their moves took place after California first announced its 2035 deadline for electric vehicle registrations.
A report by AAA Washington found that in order for Washington to have only zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2030, there needed to be a 40% annual increase in EVs. There were 50,520 EV registrations in Washington as of Dec. 30, 2020, trailing California, Florida and Texas with the most EV registration in the country, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Deepak Rajagopal, an associate professor at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, also told ABC News that Washington state’s 2030 goal and the similar proposals are bold but they come with a huge risk.
Rajagopal noted that the country’s EV charging infrastructure is still way behind where it should be to accommodate the needs of current EV engines and motorists’ demands.
“A policy like this will have some positive impact and there will be probably more investments in Washington State, but will it be big enough to help meet the target? That’s a question that no one really has an answer to,” he said.
As part of the bill, Washington state will invest nearly $74 million to develop charging infrastructure in “rural areas, multifamily housing, office buildings, schools and other public locations” and state run sites, Rajagopal also said.
Even with uncertain success, Washington’s 2030 EV registration deadline “might raise other states’ ambitions,” and have a bigger impact nationally, Rajagopal said.
If more states adopt the goal, or if Washington shows significant progress in its plan, the federal government would be pushed to speed up its plans to increase EV adoption and improve EV infrastructure, Rajagopal added.
President Joe Biden’s zero-emission executive order issued last year took a lot of policies from a similar proposal enacted in California, he said.
“It really matters what the big states do,” Rajagopal said. “If they lead the charge with EV adoptions and succeed, other states and Washington (D.C.) won’t hesitate to take the risk.”
Keoleian said he wouldn’t be surprised if other states jump on the 2030 deadline fast, especially since the country is facing a gas crisis with no end in sight.
“All of the pieces are needed. We need the vehicles to be built, we need the demand for consumers, and we need the charging infrastructure,” he said.
