Politics
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A major contributor to electric-car sales is the program under which buyers of new electric cars qualify for a federal income-tax credit of up to $7,500. But these tax credits are not unlimited. Once a manufacturer reaches sales of 200,000 plug-in electric cars (after December 31, 2009), the credits start to phase out for that company's cars. DON'T MISS: When do electric-car tax credits expire? (updated for 2018) With seven years of electric-car sales and long-range, mass-market models on the way that will appeal to a broader range of buyers, it's likely that at least one automaker will hit...
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Budget deal restores tax credits for EV charging stations, electric motorcycles, fuel-cell cars
Fears that Congress would kill the federal tax credit for purchase of a plug-in electric car were laid to rest in December when that incentive survived the $1.5 trillion tax-cut bill. Now Congress has added back a handful of other tax credits related to electric cars and greener transportation in...
John Voelcker -
Virginia state-tax rebate up to $3,500 for electric-car purchase dies in subcommittee
Virginia is for lovers—and electric-car advocated had hoped that it would soon be for lovers of electric cars and plug-in hybrids, too. A bill proposed in mid-January by Virginia House Delegate David A. Reid [D-32nd] would have granted a state-tax rebate of up to $3,500 to buyers of plug-in...
Mark Stevenson -
Why some cities should kick out cars, but others can't and won't
U.S. visitors to European cities, especially capitals like Paris and Rome and Madrid and London, often remark how different they are from those in the U.S. Many of their historic cores, dating back far before automobiles existed, remain intact—and for much of the 20th century, they coexisted...
John Voelcker -
Trump to slash clean-energy funding 72 percent, lauds "beautiful clean coal"
If a marketer talked enthusiastically about "healthy delicious cyanide," what would you think? You may wish to apply those judgments to mentions of "beautiful clean coal" by President Donald Trump, who used the phrase in Tuesday's State of the Union address. Trump claimed his administration had...
John Voelcker -
When do electric-car tax credits expire? (updated for 2018)
In less than three months, personal income-tax returns or 2017 will be due for most U.S. adults. Some of those taxpayers will have bought a plug-in electric car last year, knowing that the Federal government offers an income-tax credit to help reduce the effective cost. But as more and more...
John Voelcker -
It's now abundantly clear that Tesla has created the roadmap on how to build a widespread DC fast-charging network that lets electric-car drivers travel long distances, even across the country. The Tesla Supercharger network can only be used by Tesla cars, however—and it remains entirely unclear how, whether, or when other carmakers will be able to offer similar capabilities. Last Thursday, the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a "field hearing" at the Washington Auto Show, known for its focus on public policy that affects the auto industry. DON'T MISS: Europe...
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Trump promised to save the coal industry; it hasn't happened
You may recall that President Donald Trump made some ambitious and audacious campaign promises about his plans to revive America's dwindling coal industry. Two weeks ago, The Washington Post fact-checked the president's delivery on those promises after his first year in office—in multiples of...
Aaron Cole -
Effect of Trump solar-panel import tariffs on clean-power growth debated
A majority of the photovoltaic solar panels used in the U.S. are imported from such countries as China, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. Now, environmentalists and energy analysts worry that the new 30-percent tariff on solar-panel imports announced last Monday by President Donald...
Aaron Cole -
Georgia to take second try at electric-car tax credit after killing first one
Several years ago, Georgia offered a generous state-tax credit for purchase of a zero-emission vehicle, and its sales of electric cars boomed. When state politics interceded to kill that credit in 2015—and add a new tax specifically on those same vehicles—the state became a case study...
John Voelcker -
Colorado moves to put more electric cars onto state roads faster
A state at the forefront of U.S. electric-vehicle adoption has set an ambitious goal of nearly 1 million plug-in electric cars on its roads by 2030. Colorado, which counted 13,000 electric vehicles on the road at the end of 2017, rolled out an aggressive plan this week to achieve that goal. Its...
Mark Stevenson -
California talks to DC regulators on emission, fuel-economy rules Trump wants to cut
As automakers await the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's new fuel-economy rules for 2022 through 2025, due March 30, regulators from California and Washington are still hammering out the specifics. A meeting between state and federal regulators on fuel-economy and emissions targets...
Mark Stevenson -
Mother Nature doesn't pay attention to politics. As a pair of articles in The Washington Post last week highlighted, climate change proceeds apace regardless of the daily news cycle. In other words, unless the U.S. and the world ramp up the pace of reducing carbon-dioxide emissions from all sources, the effects of a warming planet will continue past the rise of 2 degrees C scientists argue may avert the worst effects. DON'T MISS: Most-accurate climate-change models suggest worst effects on global weather The first article juxtaposed recent data from both NASA and the National Oceanic and...
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Ford CAFE rollback efforts, countering sustainability claims, slammed in Sierra Club video
The production values are high and the message is clear in a video released Tuesday by The Sierra Club. The environmental advocacy group 's goal is simple: highlight the contrast between Ford Motor Company's claims of sustainability goals and its behind-the-scenes efforts to roll back U.S...
John Voelcker -
Gas tax should rise 25 cents to fund road repair: US Chamber of Commerce
It's an unusual thing, to say the least, when the U.S. Chamber of Commerce publicly suggests a major tax increase. In general, the pro-business lobbying group advocates for tax cuts, reducing or eliminating regulations, and free-market policies that allow companies to operate however they choose...
John Voelcker -
Number of electric cars California needs to cut 2030 emissions unclear: 4 million or 7 million?
One of California's largest electricity producers recently published a white paper that analyzed how the state will achieve its 2030 greenhouse-gas targets—and it called into question targets set forth by California regulators. Specifically, Southern California Edison (SCE) said the targeted...
Mark Stevenson -
CAFE proposal coming March 30: automakers hope national rules survive
It's been hanging out there in limbo for more than six months: the answer to the question of what happens to gas-mileage rules under Trump. Given the daily political turmoil emanating from Washington, D.C., the fate of corporate average fuel economy rules may have gotten lost in the noise. But for...
John Voelcker -
Could improving electric-car tax credit be possible even with today's politics?
Rather to the surprise of electric-car advocates, the massive tax bill passed by the U.S. Congress in December did not eliminate the federal tax credit for purchase of a plug-in electric vehicle. That credit lets buyers take a credit of $2,500 to $7,500 on their income-tax filing in the year of...
John Voelcker -
Tesla can now add another notch to its sales board. Rhode Island will allow the direct sale of Teslas and has issued a state dealer license to the company to open a dealer in Warwick. Additionally, the city itself issued its own license to the electric-vehicle manufacturer, which plans to take over the former site of a Hyundai dealer in the city toward the end of this year. DON'T MISS: Judge sides with Tesla, slams dealer association in Missouri According to the Providence Journal, Tesla CEO Elon Musk expressed interest in selling cars in the state when he met with Rhode Island Governor Gina...
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U.S. regulator rejects coal, nuclear bailout, says renewable energy may double by 2020
For much of last year, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry pursued a plan that, in essence, would prop up the financially challenged U.S. coal and nuclear industries. His proposal, submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last fall, provided financial subsidies to electric-generation...
John Voelcker -
E10 gasoline now standard, but E15 push stalled, so here comes E30
Though the Environmental Protection Agency has already ruled on ethanol-blended gasoline mixtures for 2018, that hasn't stopped ethanol advocates from pushing for a higher 30-percent blend for non-flex-fuel vehicles. The latest call for ethanol comes from corn-state ethanol refiners, farmers, and...
Mark Stevenson -
California to fall short of 100 hydrogen fueling stations by 2020
As electric charging stations continue to sprout across the country, hydrogen fueling stations haven't experienced the same rapid growth. That's an issue in California, where Assembly Bill 8 stipulates a goal of 100 functioning public hydrogen stations by 2020. The latest forecast predicts the...
Mark Stevenson -
California bill to ban new fossil-fueled car sales by 2040 introduced
A California lawmaker has submitted a bill that will ban the sale of gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles in the state starting in 2040. Assemblymember Phil Ting, a Democrat representing much of the Bay Area, introduced the bill on Wednesday, when lawmakers returned for the new legislative session...
Mark Stevenson -
Automaker push to delay, modify, or kill CAFE is nothing new
As automakers yet again lobby Washington to roll back planned fuel-economy targets for 2025, they've employed some familiar tactics to drive the point home to lawmakers. It cannot be done. It will cost too much. It will destroy the industry and kill jobs. Consumers do not want this. The science is...
Mark Stevenson