The electric vehicle incentive program made it into the budget and out of the House late last month, with Representatives allocating $1.5 million to the program. This is a far cry from the $4.5 million VPIRG and our allies have advocated for this session.
As it moves on for consideration in the Senate, we will continue to advocate for increasing the funding to $4.5 million, which would mean using the entirety of the recent auto pollution state settlement dollars for this program.
Check out our EV Incentive explainer below for more info on why this is such an important program for Vermont and our energy efficient future.
Also this session, Governor Scott’s administration announced its support for committing the entire $18.7 million in federal VW settlement money to “heavy duty” electric transportation (buses, trucks, etc.) and EV charging infrastructure. That’s a big shift from the Governor’s earlier position of intending to direct much of that settlement money to buying new diesel vehicles, and we’ll be monitoring their progress as the Administration implements its plan.