Soon, wealthy electric vehicle shoppers in the state of California won’t benefit from incentives.
The California Legislature has passed a bill that will phase out EV rebates for well-off buyers while offering new incentives to low-income car owners that get rid of their vehicle and use public transportation or join a car-sharing service. The state currently offers rebates of up to $2,500 to electric vehicle buyers to help meet a goal of getting 1.5-million zero-emission vehicles onto its roads by 2025. The overhauling of the incentive program is in response to criticism that the state’s rebates are sometimes just a windfall for the affluent.
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Even shoppers of the Tesla Model S are eligible for a $2,500 California rebate in addition to the $7,500 federal tax credit, which has caused controversy in California, which has experienced fast-growing sales of the American automaker’s luxury electric sedan.
“The income cap is meant to ensure we keep the program in the black while not undermining progress” toward the state’s EV goals, said Max Baumhefner, an attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group.
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[Source: Automotive News]
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