OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY: State EV Rebates on Hiatus in California (Unless You’re Poor).

According to the Center for Sustainable Energy, California’s Clean Vehicle Rebate program has almost run out of funding — for a second time — after Governor Jerry Brown neglected to include it in the state budget.

As a result, the program can no longer offer rebates to purchasers of zero-emission vehicles and has placed those who made a purchase after June 30th on a refund waiting list. It’s bad news for anyone in California who wanted to by an electric car. Well, unless you’re poor, because the State of California really wants to convince low-income households to buy electric for some reason.

This isn’t the first time California has showed a bias toward low-income individuals in regard to EV purchasing. Earlier this year, the state mandated that Volkswagen reserve a portion of its charging network for disadvantaged neighborhoods — instead of the higher traffic or commercial areas electric vehicles are more likely to occupy.

The state is also considering the California Electric Vehicle Initiative, which would apply additional incentives directly at the time of purchase, rather than forcing taxpayers to wait for a refund. That bill provides $3 billion in state incentives on top of the federal rebates based on manufacturer quotas. If passed, it would also set aside $500 million per year in cap and trade program funds to ensure that disadvantaged communities, schools, transit buses, and freight benefit from the electrification push.

California’s current EV program reimburses shoppers after the purchase of plug-in electric or fuel cell vehicles. Current state-based rebates range between $1,500 and $5,000, depending on the type of vehicle and the income of the buyer — prioritizing higher rebates for lesser incomes.

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with aiding the poor, why California thinks green vehicles are an essential aspect of that endeavor is bewildering. Electric vehicles provide numerous advantages, but affordability is often not among them.

California’s common people voted for this, and now they’re getting it — cars they don’t want which plug into charging stations they don’t need paid for with debt they can’t afford — good and hard.

UPDATE: Link was broken before. Fixed now — sorry!