Drive around the west valley, and you can see that Tesla has become a fashion and environmental statement in its own right. There appear to be a lot of people who want the car.
Tesla estimates that one model, Model 3, will hit a 200,000 car sales figure by 2018. However, once that sales figure is hit, the present federal subsidy of $7,500 per car will begin to phase out. See https://www.irs.gov/businesses/plug-in-electric-vehicle-credit-irc-30-and-irc-30d.
California to the rescue. Assembly Bill 1184 (the “California Electric Vehicle Initiative”; Assemb. Memb. Phil Ting-D, San Francisco) would provide state incentives for continuing Tesla purchases. The incentives would supplement the federal incentives and would replace them once the federal incentives phase out. According to the Mercury News, http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/06/28/new-bigger-incentives-for-electric-cars-could-be-ahead-in-california/,
“The air resources board would determine the size of a rebate based on equalizing the cost of an EV and a comparable gas-powered car. For example, a new, $40,000 electric vehicle might have the same features as a $25,000 gas-powered car. The EV buyer would receive a $7,500 rebate and the state would kick in an additional $7,500 to even out the bottom line.”
The cost? Oh, that. Ting’s proposal is to establish a $3 billion fund to cover, among other EV-related measures, the rebates. The $3 billion will come from additions to your taxes.
This article originally appeared in my column for the Valley New Group of newspapers in the West San Fernando Valley, California.
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