Lawmakers vary on providing ‘choice’ to Louisiana auto buyers

Invoking support for “free market” and “consumer choice” philosophies, Louisiana lawmakers advanced a bill Tuesday that would prohibit any state agencies or local governments from restricting the sale of fuel-burning vehicles in Louisiana.

But their support ended minutes later when presented with a bill that would let consumers purchase electric vehicles directly from manufacturers. 

“One thing that is near and dear to all of us is the freedom to choose,” Rep. Phillip Tarver, R-Lake Charles, said while presenting his legislation to the House Transportation Committee. “…We’re just preserving the right of citizens to choose the transportation method they prefer.”

House Bill 341, dubbed the “Preserving Vehicle Purchase Choice Act,” cleared the committee without objection Tuesday and will next head to the House floor for consideration.

Tarver, who also sits on the committee, said his bill would prohibit any government body in Louisiana from adopting or enforcing rules that prohibit the use or sale of a motor vehicle based on how it’s powered. While the bill does not explicitly include electric vehicles, Tarver said it would protect vehicles of all energy sources. 

Jacque Lindsey, an executive officer with the Louisiana chapter of the motorcycle club American Bikers Active Towards Education (ABATE), spoke in support of the proposal. Lindsey referred to an open letter that 16 Republican governors sent to President Joe Biden in January in which they accuse him of enacting an electric vehicle mandate and a ban on gas-powered cars. 

No such mandate or ban exists. Even if it did, state legislatures would have no authority to reverse or block it under the U.S. Constitution’s supremacy clause.  

Lindsey expressed concerns the federal government would soon ban gas-powered motorcycles and suggested such efforts would conflict with “free market” capitalism and consumer choice.

“ABATE of Louisiana is a strong believer in the free market,” Lindsey said. “Not only do we believe that manufacturers should have the right to build and sell the products they choose, but consumers should also be free to decide what type of vehicle they purchase.”  

Referring to the supremacy clause, Rep. C. Travis Johnson, D-Vidalia, pointed out the bill would do nothing to stop federal regulation from taking effect. Tarver briefly acknowledged that fact as discussion on his bill wound down. 

“As I said, freedom of choice is inherent in our daily lives, and this choice needs to be preserved as technology continues to develop,” Tarver said in his closing testimony to the committee. 

Immediately following the committee’s approval of Tarver’s bill, Rep. Aimee Freeman, D-New Orleans, presented a bill framed in the same free market and consumer choice philosophies but with regards to electric vehicles. 

Lawmakers did not show the same enthusiasm for Freeman’s House Bill 535, which would have given Louisiana residents the freedom to purchase electric vehicles directly from manufacturers. The proposal failed to advance without a vote. 

“Strange things happen in this building sometimes,” Freeman said. “I think it’s quite ironic that I’m presenting right after Rep. Tarver’s ‘Preserving Vehicle Purchase Choice Act,’ which doesn’t mention electric vehicles but is supposed to be about choice.”

Tesla and Rivian, two of the nation’s most popular electric vehicle manufacturers, sell their vehicles directly to consumers rather than using dealerships, which has disrupted the traditional car buying market. Currently, state law prohibits direct car sales from manufacturers, so Louisiana residents cannot lawfully purchase from Tesla and Rivian. 

Freeman said she wrote the bill at the request of a constituent who recently tried to purchase a Rivian SUV. He had to have an out-of-state relative purchase it on his behalf and shipped there before driving it home and registering it in Louisiana. 

Rep. Rodney Schamerhorn, R-Hornbeck, who said he is opposed to zero-emissions vehicles and equipment, asked why anyone would purchase a car without having a single service center for that car in their state. 

Freeman said she personally would not purchase such a vehicle but explained that her constituent is an early adopter of technology. 

“Yeah, I’m sure when he has to get it repaired it is not a fun day,” she said. “I think he has to have it shipped on a flatbed to another state. But that’s his choice, right?”

Freeman said her bill has all the same hallmarks of the free market philosophy in Tarver’s bill, but her only support on the committee came from fellow Democrat, Rep. Pat Moore of Monroe. 

“If someone really wants to do that… isn’t that their choice?” Moore said. “It’s not forcing anything. It’s just providing for anybody that wants to do this.”

Not all of the opposition to Freeman’s bill came from Republicans. 

Johnson said he believes electric vehicles are the future but didn’t want to support anything that could harm small businesses. He suggested car dealerships are there to protect car buyers. 

“I think it’s about consumer protection as well,” Johnson said. “You don’t buy a house without a real estate agent. You don’t buy an IRA or annuities without a financial adviser, and you don’t buy insurance without an agent.”  

The Pelican Institute filed a statement in support of Freeman’s legislation, while the Louisiana Automobile Dealers Association and several of its members opposed it.