Truck, bus and lumber dealers warn Vermont not ready for immediate zero-emission sales mandate

Bill Smith, a lawyer who represents the Vermont Truck and Bus Association and the Vermont Retail Lumber Dealers Association, told the House Transportation Committee that Vermont’s planned zero-emission sales requirement for medium- and heavy-duty trucks would be premature for the state’s fleet and businesses.

“They’re not ready for prime time,” Smith said, summarizing his clients’ view of battery-electric medium- and heavy-duty trucks. He told the committee the vehicles “cost too much, and they do too little, and they might not even be available here.”

Smith said the pending requirement would require 10% of medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold in Vermont to be zero-emission beginning with model year 2026, and said manufacturers and dealers were unlikely to bring electric heavy trucks to Vermont if they could meet regulatory obligations elsewhere. He added that school buses in the same vehicle-size categories face a 13% sales threshold under the same framework.

Why it matters: Smith told legislators that trucking and local building-supply firms together employ many Vermonters and supply most towns in the state. He said the associations he represents include small family firms and large carriers; he cited a figure that 1 in 18 jobs in Vermont is tied to trucking and that the average wage in the trucking industry is about $54,000 a year. For long-haul drivers he said pay can exceed $70,000.

Cost and availability concerns: Smith offered specific cost comparisons drawn from materials he submitted to the committee. He said a diesel Class 5 delivery truck typically sells for roughly $118,000–$120,000, while a battery-electric equivalent would cost about $341,000. For Class 8 tractor units he said diesel prices are roughly $150,000–$170,000 versus electric units listed in the roughly $435,000–$450,000 range. He warned that higher acquisition prices, combined with expensive charging infrastructure, would strain private operators.

Charging and dealer readiness: Smith said some truck dealers were told they must install at least one charger to sell electric heavy trucks. He quoted a member who reported a Green Mountain Power estimate of $280,000 to install a charging station at a dealership that then had a single electric truck customer.

Operational limits and payload: Smith said battery-electric tractor units weigh about 13,000 pounds more than diesel equivalents, which reduces cargo capacity on an 80,000-pound gross vehicle weight limit from roughly 40,000 pounds of cargo to about 27,000 pounds for an equivalent electric rig. He warned that this would require more trucks — and therefore more capital and operating cost — to move the same freight.

Range, climate and duty-cycle concerns: Smith said available electric trucks do not meet many Vermont duty cycles, particularly long-haul runs and cold-weather needs. He noted that cold temperatures and hilly terrain — characteristics he said describe Vermont — reduce range and complicate charging needs. He described range and fast-charging limitations for heavy trucks and said batteries and motors for large vehicles require very high power levels and generate heat during rapid charging.

Infrastructure and public spending: Smith criticized figures in the Vermont Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan that he reviewed, saying the plan showed nearly $54 million in federal and state funds supporting roughly 66 electric transit vehicles (public transit and similar purchases), which he calculated as approximately $818,000 per vehicle. He asked the committee for clarification of that number and said the figure surprised him as a taxpayer.

Fleet age and transition costs: Smith said about 40% of Vermont’s medium- and heavy-duty commercial fleet is more than 15 years old and that some operators are repairing older trucks rather than replacing them because the newer alternatives are unaffordable or unavailable. He estimated an added operating cost of about $50,000 per truck per year for current electric alternatives when accounting for purchase price, charging and battery replacement uncertainty.

Alternatives and technology mix: Smith noted other technologies — hydrogen fuel cells, renewable diesel and credits/banking systems used by manufacturers — and said the marketplace is still evolving. He acknowledged progress in passenger vehicle electrification, but said that success does not directly translate to medium- and heavy-duty applications.

Committee handling: The committee’s chair (unidentified in the transcript) opened the hearing and invited Smith to present. A representative asked Smith two questions about fuel economy and greenhouse-gas reduction ideas; Smith replied that his clients typically get about 6–7 miles per gallon hauling 40,000 pounds and reiterated cost and practicality concerns.

Next steps and outreach: Smith invited committee members to the Truck and Bus Association’s March 19 legislative lunch and said he was available for follow-up and additional testimony.

What this article does not assert: The article does not conclude whether the sales mandate is legally or technically required in Vermont or whether regulators will alter timelines; it reports the testimony and figures Smith presented to the committee and indicates where he requested further explanation from state planning documents.