Two Democrat members of the Minnesota state legislature, Reps. Heather Edelson and Jerry Newton, proposed a ban on gas-powered chainsaws and lawnmowers in the North Star State on Monday.
According to Fox News, the ban would go into effect on January 1, 2025 and include "any machine that uses 'a spark ignition engine rated at or below 19 kilowatts or 25 gross horsepower.' Commonly used landscaping tools like lawn mowers, leaf blowers, hedge clippers, chainsaws, lawn edgers, string trimmers and brush cutters would all be prohibited by that definition."
The ban would cover garden and lawn equipment as well as ice-resurfacing machines that are used in locations such as skating rinks, such as Zambonis.
Newton and Edelson are both members of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), and introduced the bill as an effort to combat climate change, the publication reported.
The measure comes after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed into law a Democrat-backed bill that "that requires electricity production be 80 percent carbon-free by 2030 and 100 percent by 2040. Republicans labeled it the 'blackout bill.'"
House Speaker Melissa Hortman said, "DFLers are committed to taking action on climate – unchecked climate pollution threatens Minnesota’s future. Now is the time to take bold action and ensure Minnesotans have the healthy climate and clean energy future they deserve."
In 2021, Gavin Newsom signed similar legislation into law in California, banning gas-powered lawn mowers and leaf blowers starting in 2024.
Several other Democrat-led cities and states have proposed bans on gas stoves and appliances. In December of 2021, then-NYC Mayor Bill DeBlasio signed a law mandating that newly constructed buildings in NYC ban gas stoves and all-new buildings run only on electricity by 2027.
In January, New York Governor Kathy Hochul introduced "The New York Housing Compact," which included a ban on gas stoves, oil furnaces, and hot water heaters in commercial construction and new homes.
Gas stoves are used in roughly 40 percent of American households.
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