New Jersey may soon become one of the best places to own an electric car because of a bill set to be voted on next week. The bill is part of a push to reduce air pollution in one of the most polluted states in the nation. New Jersey and New York City are ranked as the 10th worst area in the nation for smog. Transportation ranks as the number one producer of greenhouse gases for the state, so this push to get more EVs on the road could have a great impact on air quality for people with asthma.
To reach this goal and bring many more electric cars into the state they’ll be offering a massive incentive. On top of the federal tax credit of $2500-$7500 and the state already waiving the 7% sales tax, motorists will be excited to receive an up to $5000 rebate for their purchase of an electric car, hopefully making them a more competitive option for consumers over a gas guzzler. The rebate is $25 per mile of vehicle range, capped at $5000. A car would need a range of 200 miles in order to get the full rebate, which many EVs today can easily hit, such as the Tesla Model 3 and Nissan Leaf. The rebate also applies to plug-in hybrid cars, though as their fully electric range is much shorter than fully electric cars they won’t sport such a hefty rebate. Some have criticized this approach for penalizing plug-in hybrids as they represent a sizable portion of the EV market and may be an easier transition for consumers who have anxiety about making the shift to electric.
This bill packs another great boon to electric car owners, more charging locations. A lack of charging locations has always been a source of pain for those looking to make the switch to electric, and it will be tough for electric cars to take over without this infrastructure in place. The state already has plans to build over 800 EV charging outlets with money from a settlement from Volkswagen due to the manufacturer falsifying emissions data. On top of that, this bill proposes adding another 400 to 600 fast-charging stations around the state. These fast-charging stations can give you 60 to 80 miles of range after just 20 minutes of charging. And that’s just the start. The bill calls for the installation of 1000 level two chargers by 2025, 30% of apartments and 50% of hotels to have chargers by 2030, and for all state-owned non-emergency vehicles to go electric by 2035. Hopefully, this will make life very easy for electric vehicle owners in New Jersey, no longer struck by the anxiety of running out of range.
While this bill has taken plenty of time to finally reach this point, this shows that lawmakers are moving to increase EV adoption and starting to take steps to help the environment. This seems to have been a long time coming, but it feels like EVs are starting to pick up some steam and we can only hope that other states take similar measures in the future. Maybe someday in the near future, we’ll see full-electric charging infrastructure built up across the nation, making more green road trips possible and building up consumer confidence in EVs. While we are in the final hour, nothing is certain, so we can only hope that everything goes well. But support around the bill seems very strong, so things are looking very good for potential electric car buyers in New Jersey.
