It was a victim of its own success…
Not only does the federal government offer tax rebates to people who buy electric cars, so do many states like New Jersey. Actually, the Garden State used to offer a rebate program for EVs, but it recently pumped the brakes on that.
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According to a Fox Business report, the New Jersey EV rebate program was so successful, people were flocking to buy and lease new electric cars. As a result, the government program ran out of money and had to be put on idle, for now.
For the fiscal year ending in July, the EV rebate program had doled out an estimated $35 million. That’s quite the lump sum of taxpayer money handed out mostly to people who are financially well off. For anyone who would contest that’s who benefits from these EV incentives, just take a look at how much the average electric car sells for, then look at the median household income for New Jersey.
New Jersey has been running the program for three years, handing out $4,000 when someone in the state buys or leases a new EV. Just like the federal program, taxpayer dollars are diverted to subsidizing the purchase or lease of a new electric car all in the name of pumping up that niche of the automotive market.
Even with all the government help, EVs have barely cracked 7% of the national car market. Still, government officials feel it’s important for everyone to help bankroll these purchases made mostly by affluent individuals since driving an EV will ostensibly “save the environment” and stop New Jersey from sinking underwater.
Thankfully, saving the planet will resume on July 1 when the New Jersey EV rebate program reportedly will be up and running again. In the meantime, people in New Jersey will just have to take public transportation or walk since burning dino juice on your own is definitely irresponsible.
Image via Ford
