California is making a\u00a0bet: Once you\u2019ve driven an EV, you won\u2019t want to go back to a\u00a0gas-powered car.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed legislation<\/a> creating the MyFirstEV<\/a> program. It\u2019s the state\u2019s first big attempt to make up for the loss of federal EV tax credits, and it\u2019s exclusively targeting the key demographic of EV neophytes.<\/p>\n The fine details are still being hashed out in advance<\/a> of MyFirstEV\u2019s official launch later this summer. But, in broad strokes, the program will offer a $3,500 rebate at the point of sale for a\u00a0first-time purchase or lease of any new EV that retails for $50,000 or less, and a $1,750 rebate for a\u00a0used EV selling for $25,000 or\u00a0less.<\/p>\n The program is funded with $270 million. Half of that will come from the state budget, and the other half \u2014 in a\u00a0rare arrangement \u2014 will come from participating automakers, including Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Lucid, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Rivian, Subaru, Tesla, Toyota, and\u00a0Volvo.<\/p>\n For years, consumers across the nation could get discounts of up to $7,500 for new EVs and up to $4,000 for used EVs. These tax credits were crucial: They could make some new EVs cost-competitive<\/a> with new fossil-fueled cars.<\/p>\n That poses problems for decarbonization goals held by states like California, as fossil-fueled vehicles are among the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the nation.<\/p>\n California\u2019s new program is notable both because it is by far the nation\u2019s largest EV market and because it\u2019s the first to tie rebates to first-time EV buyers.<\/p>\n That\u2019s according to Rachel Reolfi, senior policy analyst at research firm Atlas Public Policy. She made the case for strategies like MyFirstEV in a\u00a0December policy paper<\/a> that argued states will get more \u200b\u201cbang for the buck\u201d if they limit incentives to first-time buyers.<\/p>\n As Reolfi told Canary Media, this \u200b\u201cpretty novel concept\u201d makes sense because of a\u00a0simple fact: \u200b\u201cWhen folks buy an EV, they don\u2019t go back to gas\u00a0cars.\u201d<\/p>\n Survey data supports the point. J.D. Power\u2019s February consumer satisfaction survey<\/a> shows that 96% of U.S. EV owners would consider purchasing or leasing another EV for their next vehicle. Concerns about range and charging availability also drop significantly once a\u00a0person starts driving an EV, per analysis<\/a> from EV-advocacy group Plug In America.<\/p>\n This data helped inform California\u2019s MyFirstEV program, said Dan Krassner, executive director of EVs for All America<\/a>, a\u00a0nonprofit research group that commissioned the Atlas report.<\/p>\n By focusing scarce state funds on first-time EV buyers, \u200b\u201ceach rebate buys a\u00a0customer rather than a\u00a0transaction,\u201d Krassner said in an email. American EV Jobs Alliance, his group\u2019s advocacy affiliate, \u200b\u201ctook that concept into California and made the case for it with lawmakers, the administration, and coalition partners.\u201d<\/p>\n