Californians with incomes of $250,000 or more, or couples earning half a million dollars or more, have lost their eligibility to receive most state electric vehicle rebates as a result of a required vote by the California Air Resources Board.
The vote stems from 2014 legislation (SB 1275) authored by Sen. Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), now Senate President pro Tempore, described here last year "that directs the state to put 1 million low- and zero-emission vehicles on California roads by 2023," writes Patrick McGreevy for the Los Angeles Times.
"Money for the subsidies comes from a surcharge on vehicle registration fees and a portion of the smog fee paid by California motorists," adds McGreevy. In other words, a small percentage of the flat, i.e., doesn't vary with the type or year of vehicle, registration and smog fees for an old vehicle paid by a low-income motorist, goes to subsidize wealthy motorists who purchase new, expensive electric vehicles (EVs) - not exactly an equitable situation.
The rebate subsidies come from the California Clean Vehicle Retirement Project. Rebates for eligible vehicles range from $900 to $5,000, with plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), e.g., Chevy Volt, receiving $1,500, and all-electrics, e.g., Nissan Leaf, receiving $2,500. This state rebate is on top of the federal Plug-In Electric Drive Vehicle Credit of up to $7,500.
Residents with income above the cap level have four to six months from June 25, when the ARB voted to add the income caps, to purchase an eligible vehicle and receive the rebate. All residents can still receive the $5,000 rebate for a fuel cell vehicle. The ARB chose to exempt the cap for those models.
I'm not sure whether qualifying for the $2,500 rebate for Tesla purchases will have much impact on sales of a vehicle that just received a perfect rating from Consumer Reports
"The new Tesla Model S P85D left the folks at Consumer Reports grasping for ways to properly rate the car, after it scored a 103 — out of 100," reports NPR. "It kind of broke the system," says Jake Fisher, director of the magazine's auto test division.
FULL STORY: California limits hybrid rebates to households earning less than $500,000
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association