Washington state just out California’d California, some 800,000 Subarus will soon need to visit home, and Ford just added a new exec that will do lobbyist-type things but isn’t
technically a lobbyist. All that and more in this TGIF edition of The Morning Shift for April 16, 2021.
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1st Gear: Washington State Just Got Real
Washington has passed a bill banning the sale of new gas-powered cars in the state beginning in 2030. That’s five years earlier than California and Massachusetts, meaning Washington’s ban will kick in the soonest of any state’s at the moment. It applies to the registration of any vehicle model year 2030 or newer, so importing a new gas -powered car sold in other states won’t be permitted, either.
The top two executives at Ford Motor Co. decided they wanted to add more muscle to their team to navigate the industry s dynamic landscape that s facing new challenges every day, so they created a vice chair of policy role for Jon Huntsman Jr.
He will get paid a $1 million base salary plus $3 million in stock to advise CEO Jim Farley and Executive Chairman Bill Ford on strategic policy matters, according to Ford regulatory filings.
Farley and Ford recommended the hire to the board, said company spokesman T.R. Reid, and it was approved by the board of directors on Wednesday.
Good Tuesday morning!
In a landmark decision, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled 8-1 yesterday in favor of recognizing non-Orthodox conversions for the sake of granting citizenship.
The ruling was met with a flurry of condemnation by haredi lawmakers as well as both Israeli chief rabbis. The Likud Party said the decision “endangers the Law of Return,” while Opposition Leader Yair Lapid welcomed the move, saying that Israel needs to “fully equalize the rights of all streams of Judaism Orthodox, Reform and Conservative.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet weighed in on the decision.
The justices noted in their decision that they waited 15 years to issue a ruling, during which the Knesset dragged its feet on the issue, and did not advance legislation to address it. The Knesset has previously floated legislation that would allow it to override High Court decisions.
A year ago, amid a crowded Democratic presidential primary, no one would have mistaken Joe Biden as the field s biggest climate crusader. Youth activists gave his plan to combat climate change a failing grade. Some in his own party wondered whether a self-described moderate could embrace policies bold enough to move the nation past the fossil fuel era.
Patrick Semansky/AP
President-elect Joe Biden speaks after the Electoral College formally elected him as president, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. But in recent days, the president-elect has demonstrated that he is prepared to deliver on his promise to pursue a more ambitious environmental agenda than any of his predecessors - one that aspires to rapidly shrink the nation s carbon emissions, give voice to the vulnerable communities hit hardest by pollution and create solid jobs in industries helping to create a greener future.