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Hello, CARB:

I'm managing editor of Solar Today Magazine in Boulder, Colo. I'm
also an electric vehicle hobbyist. I'm one of thousands of
shade-tree mechanics around the country who like to swap electric
motors into old vehicles, discarding the inefficient polluting
gasoline engines. I commute to work with one of the machines I
built, using components purchased in part from California vendors.

But I'm also a fan of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The
vehicle I want -- a light all-wheel-drive station wagon -- is not
now commercially available. So I'm keenly interested in doing a
PHEV conversion of an old Subaru.

To do so, I'll have to buy batteries, controllers, adapter plates,
and possible motor and exhaust parts from a vendor, just as I do
now for EV parts. Most of these vendors are start-up companies in
California. If your new rules put them out of business, it will
stop the progress of PHEV and EV conversions across the country.
That can only retard progress toward cleaner air everywhere.

I implore you to phase in your new rules to promote the growth of
small manufacturers and conversion shops. It's the best thing you
could do to promote the long-term goal of cleaner air, reduced
carbon, and an emerging category of secure green-collar jobs.