Spring has sprung and so has EV policy at the federal level in 2019. Plug In America has been working to advance EV policy and educate more members of Congress on the benefits of driving electric and electrifying the transportation sector.
Our top priority is securing more co-sponsors for the Driving America Forward Act, which extends the federal EV tax credit to an additional 400,000 credits to be available for consumers per each automaker. You can check out the current list of co-sponsors here. If your representative is not yet a co-sponsor, we encourage you to reach out and tout the benefits of driving electric.
Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Representative Peter Welch (D-VT) also introduced the Electric Cars Act to extend the EV tax credit for 10 years. In addition, Merkley and Representative Mike Levin (D-CA) introduced the Zero Emission Vehicle Act of 2019, which would require that by 2030, 50% of sales of new passenger vehicles are zero emission, ramping up 5% each year after that to reach 100% of sales by 2040.
Finally, the House Energy and Commerce Committee introduced the Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act (HR 2471). As part of a larger bill, sections 34301–34307 are specific to EVs. The bill would establish a national policy statement that would seek to promote greater electrification of the transportation sector. The bill would also develop a model building code for residential and commercial buildings to install EV charging equipment, allow for states to encourage their utilities to invest in the transportation electrification sector and deploy EV charging stations, and provide grants to states to develop State Energy Transportation Plans that seek to promote electric transportation.
Other EV bills we’re working on include:
- Federal Leadership in Energy Efficient Transportation (FLEET) Act of 2019 (HR 2337), sponsored by Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA). The bill requires U.S. Postal Service (USPS) fleet to become cleaner over time.
- Clean Corridors Act of 2019 (S.674), sponsored by Senator Tom Carper (D-DE), that would provide grant funding for the installation of EV charging stations along designated corridors across the National Highway System.
