How Maryland’s Tesla Sales Bill Really Got Passed: Its Sponsor Tells The Story (Video)How Maryland’s Tesla Sales Bill Really Got Passed: Its Sponsor Tells The Story (Video)

Last week, barely minutes before it adjourned, the Maryland House of Representatives passed a bill authorizing Tesla Motors to sell its electric cars from up to four stores in the state.
Now, courtesy of a video sent in by a reader, we can hear that bill’s sponsor describe the process that led to the bill–and why he cared about Tesla in the first place.
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Speaking on April 18 at a “Reach the Beach” event at Hooper’s Crab House in Ocean City, Delegate Kirill Reznik of Montgomery County discussed the events that led to the passage of House Bill 235, which he sponsored.
The gathering was organized by Tesla Road Trip; Reznik noted that Tesla had loaned him a P85+ for the day (but not, he said ruefully, a P85D) to drive to the event.
The 12-minute video opens with the reasons Maryland was a target state for Tesla. It’s the wealthiest state in the country, Reznik said, has the highest level of education, and is socially progressive.
Maryland State Delegate Kirill Reznik
But, he said, he learned last year that Maryland was one of just five states that explicitly prohibited Tesla sales–which he said he found “ridiculous.”
After talking with the Tesla government affairs department, Reznik introduced his bill early in the year’s session.
And, he said, the bill’s backers worked from the start with the Maryland dealers association. That group was willing to come to the table early, he said, and sit down to negotiate terms, with the goal of making sure “they weren’t seen as an obstacle” here.
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“And then GM showed up,” Reznik noted, “and as I like to put it, pulled the pin on the grenade and threw it.”
Backers of the bill, he said, had to deal with opposition by the corporation’s legislative affairs group up until the last day of the session–despite the cooperation from the Maryland dealers.
Under state law, any bill that hasn’t passed both the House and Senate by midnight of the 90th day of the session dies. Its backers must start over from scratch in the next session.
Reception at Tesla Store in New York Ciy following cross-country road trip in Model S electric cars
Reznik goes into detail on the negotiations among House and Senate committees. The dealers had agreed to six Tesla locations, but opponents had only agreed to two.
With wrangling to get to a compromise of four, the bill came to the House at 10:30 pm, leaving just 90 minutes–“and that was where it got really hairy,” Reznik related.
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Amidst procedural hurdles, committees departing from the floor, yelling at the speaker’s podium, and more, the bill was passed with just six minutes left.
If you’ve ever wondered about the sausage-making machinery of democracy that leads to changes in state laws, Reznik is an enthusiastic storyteller.
Reception at Tesla Store in New York Ciy following cross-country road trip in Model S electric cars
The Tesla bill is expected to be signed next month by Governor Larry Hogan, with Tesla executives in attendance. It will take effect October 1.
Perhaps in a year or two, Reznik suggested, rather than 100 Teslas, there will be 1,000 on the roads of Maryland.
The meeting ended so those attending could participate in, as Reznik described it, “the quietest road rally I’ve ever heard.”
[hat tip: Mark Czajka]
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