Title
Air Quality Management District (AQMD) recommending the Board, acting as the AQMD Board of Directors, approve amendments to the Drive Clean program that:
1) Increase the Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) minimum all electric range (AER) eligibility requirement from 23 miles to 30 miles, and
2) Increase the amount of time allowed between the pre-approval and the vehicle purchase/lease dates.
FUNDING: 100% State Surcharge Fees.
Body
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
On February 10, 2020, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved changes to the Clean Vehicle Rebate Program (CVRP). Those changes included (1) using the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) AER determination instead of the CARB Urban Dynamometer Driving Schedule (UDDS) determination as a metric for PHEV eligibility as AER information is more readily available to consumers, and (2) increasing PHEV electric range threshold to 30 miles AER. Because of differences in the way the AER and UDDS values are derived, an AER of 30 miles is equivalent to a UDDS of 45 miles. These changes become effective on April 6, 2021.
AQMD proposes making the same change to the EDC Drive Clean vehicle incentive program. The current Drive Clean PHEV electric range eligibility threshold of 35 miles UDDS (23 miles AER) will be replaced with a new threshold of 30 miles AER (45 miles UDDS). This will result in several, currently available PHEVs with shorter electric ranges being ineligible for the Drive Clean program. Establishing consistent eligibility requirements for the CVRP and the Drive Clean programs will simplify the decision making process for consumers and encourage them to consider PHEVs with higher electric ranges. Restricting the use of available motor vehicle emission reduction funds for PHEVs with higher electric ranges improves the program's cost effectiveness. This requirement would become effective on April 6, 2021, and apply to applications received on or after that da...
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