The author of the July 7 essay, “New Mexico must embrace a sensible energy policy,” by Hunter Thomas would like us to believe that strong clean car policies adopted by New Mexico and 12 other states are radical and harmful. But when it comes to cleaning up the transportation sector, it is very simple: stronger clean car standards are a key mechanism to get more electric vehicle options to the state for consumers who want them, open up a robust secondary EV market, and cut deadly tailpipe pollution in New Mexico.

New EVs are now sticker price comparable to new gas-powered cars, and that’s before the federal and state incentives and rebates that provide even more savings. With volatile gas prices being a perennial concern, EVs are also much more affordable to fuel and maintain. It is estimated that by 2050, clean car standards will save New Mexicans $300 million from vehicle lifetime fuel savings and lower maintenance costs.

Misrepresenting New Mexico’s clean transportation policy is cynical and ignores the urgency of our air quality crisis and need for creative, accessible solutions that benefit all New Mexicans, especially those disproportionately impacted by tailpipe pollution whether or not they own a car. Putting more electric vehicles on New Mexico’s roadways is a key step in cleaning up our air for everyone.

ONA PORTER
Founder Emerita & Clean Energy Leader, Prosperity Works 

In 2021, New Mexico passed community solar legislation which authorized projects to be built here. They are large, 30-acre solar farms that provide electricity to many households and businesses without barriers that can be faced with rooftop solar such as cost, home ownership or roof health. Community solar is available to renters and homeowners, no matter the condition of their roofs, and to people without capital to make an investment in other forms of solar. Community solar is cleaner and cheaper to produce. 

Access to community solar helps limited-income New Mexicans lower their energy bills so that they can use these financial resources on other critical needs. Community solar projects pass the electricity-generating savings to their customers. Households with limited incomes will be able to save up to 30% on their monthly electric bill and market rate customers 10%. This savings is critical to lower the energy burden in households. Energy burden is the percentage that a household spends on their utility bills compared to their annual income. In middle-income homes, the energy burden is about 2%. In low-income homes in New Mexico, the energy burden goes as high as 30%. 

Over the last two years, Prosperity Works has completed several community solar initiatives to ensure the deepest impact for low-income households in New Mexico. We wrote a best practice guide for the State of New Mexico so that the over 45 projects that will be built in the state will benefit our most vulnerable households. 

Currently, we are partnering with several community solar projects to help households sign up for community solar. We want to share information about community solar with more New Mexicans. If you have a group that we should reach out to, please let us know. 
​
If you would like us to provide you with more information about community solar, let us know by filling out this interest form. 

Thank you to all our supporters who continue to sustain our work!

• Energy-efficient lighting and power strips
• ​Weatherstripping
• Faucet aerators
• Smart thermostats
• Air duct sealing and attic insulation
• Refrigerator replacements for very old units
• Introduction to Community Solar 

“Today we are excited to continue our work to address the unequal burden that energy costs place on lower-income households within the Town of Bernalillo after seeing great success with our program in Albuquerque, ” said Prosperity Works CEO, Dr. Ann Lyn Hall. “These energy upgrades will not only help lower bills for limited-income families but also allow them to focus on their health and financial freedom.” 

Through capital stacking and partnerships with local city governments, the PNM Good Neighborhood Fund, the New Mexico Gas Company, and EnergyWorks, Prosperity Works offers these energy efficiency upgrades at no cost to homeowners. 

“The Town is proud to announce our first-ever Energy Equity Day Celebration. Together with our partners at PNM, NM GAS CO., and Prosperity Works, we will provide resources to community members to improve the quality of life in their homes and help reduce costs and carbon emissions,” said Jack Torres, Mayor of Bernalillo.  “We are grateful to these partners for offering these wonderful benefits to Bernalillo residents.” 

“We’re keeping equity in the front seat of our strategies outlined by the Climate Action Plan,” said City of Albuquerque Sustainability Officer, Kelsey Rader. “Our frontline communities face the highest energy burdens, and we are taking steps with our community partners to ensure equitable access to energy efficiency upgrades and more to build a climate resilient future for all.”

About Prosperity Works
Prosperity Works is an economic equity and justice organization that is best known for launching the first Individual Development Account initiative in New Mexico and for the award-winning Prosperity Kids program. The organization is committed to fighting for greater financial inclusion and opportunity for all New Mexicans. Key areas of advocacy include providing equitable access to renewable energy for income-restricted families, bringing awareness to community programs and organizations designed to help limited-income individuals, and developing financial capability training and coaching for all New Mexicans.

BY SARA GERSEN, SENIOR ATTORNEY and ONA PORTER, GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

To expand at-home charging for low- and moderate-income electric vehicle drivers, New Mexico shines a guiding light. Although early adopters of electric vehicles paid a high premium for cleaner cars, today’s electric car drivers often save money. Over their vehicles’ lifetimes, it costs much less to fuel and maintain electric cars than their gas-guzzling competition. In just a few years, experts expect the sticker price of an electric car will be lower than that of a comparable gas car. This means customers who purchase electric cars could save money from day one and thousands more in the coming years--if they have the charging infrastructure they need to fuel up on low-cost electricity. Making sure all drivers have access to low-cost vehicle charging is essential to relieving the disproportionate cost burdens of transportation on low- and middle-income families. 

The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission recently approved a suite of programs that will allow the state’s investor-owned utilities to support charging infrastructure in single-family and multi-family homes, workplaces, and other public places, as well as charging infrastructure for transit and school buses. In the coming years, massive deployments of infrastructure will be necessary to support electric vehicles in all of these settings. Earthjustice represented Prosperity Works and drew on Prosperity Works’ decades of experience with low-income energy efficiency programs to identify strategies that will help ensure these programs will be accessible to the families that need them most. 
To implement best practices from these energy efficiency programs, policymakers should apply the following key principles to electric vehicle programs that help low- and moderate-income customers install chargers at home:

• Cover up-front costs.  Two of New Mexico’s utilities initially proposed programs that would have required low-income customers to bear the up-front costs of buying and installing chargers, and then apply to the utility for rebates. This approach is not appropriate for low-income customers, who are unlikely to have cash on hand for these projects. After raising these concerns, both Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) and El Paso Electric Company (EPE) agreed to cover these up-front costs.
• Provide greater benefits to low- and moderate-income participants.  Level 2 vehicle chargers, which charge vehicles much faster and more reliably than standard-issue Level 1 chargers, cost hundreds of dollars to purchase and can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars to install, depending on the circumstances. Enhanced incentives will be necessary to put this equipment within reach of low- and moderate-income families. These incentives are especially important because installing a new vehicle charger can require expensive upgrades in older homes that have not been renovated recently. Consequently, low-income families can face even greater installation costs than families who live in newer housing stock. To defray these costs, PNM will be able to offer $500 for a Level 2 charger and up to $2,000 installation costs for low- and moderate-income customers.
• Community-to-community outreach.  Customers can’t benefit from programs unless they know about and understand them. While utilities often rely on out-of-state contractors for “one-size-fits-all” marketing strategies, trusted community-based organizations should deliver tailored education campaigns about electric vehicles and assistance programs. In New Mexico, PNM agreed to implement this best practice and contract with a community-based organization to perform outreach and education activities that are specifically tailored to the needs of underserved communities. 
• Self-certification of eligibility.  Historically, proving your eligibility for low-income energy efficiency programs has been a significant barrier to participation because programs often have onerous documentation requirements. PNM and EPE’s vehicle programs eliminate this barrier by having participants certify their eligibility on an honors system. 
• Eliminate eligibility requirements that could prevent low- and moderate-income customers from participating.  For example, PNM proposed only allowing customers to participate in their home charging program if they connected their EV chargers to the internet with Wi-Fi or cellular service. This eligibility requirement would have effectively excluded the many New Mexicans who do not have home Wi-Fi. To diminish this barrier, the Commission removed this requirement for customers in the low- and moderate-income program. 
• Customer service in multiple languages.  Program administrators should translate outreach materials and hire diverse staff who can communicate with community members who are not comfortable with English.
• Leverage contacts with participants to educate them about other cost-saving opportunities.  When a customer interacts with the utility to enroll in an EV program, it is an opportunity to educate that customer about other offerings that could help lower their energy bills, such as energy efficiency programs. PNM and EPE both agreed to cross-promote their low-income efficiency programs to participants in their low-income EV program.

Low- and moderate-income New Mexicans understand the stakes of the climate crisis and want to be full participants in solving it. Prosperity Works has worked for years to deliver energy efficiency upgrades that make homes more affordable, comfortable, and environmentally sustainable. Now, electric vehicle charging is another feature of a modern home that must not be a luxury for the privileged. Earthjustice and Prosperity Works’ advocacy is helping make this vision a reality in New Mexico.  

“I have been a fan of Prosperity Works for many years and I am very excited to join the Prosperity Works team to support the mission of economic prosperity for all New Mexicans,” commented Ms. Hall. “I am eager to work with the Prosperity Works Board and partners to continue to build on the compelling outcomes that Prosperity Works has achieved over the years. I am overjoyed to get to work with a leader of the caliber and reputation like Ona Porter.”  

Prosperity Works utilizes a dual-pronged anti-poverty tack that includes "out of poverty" and "ending poverty" strategies. Out of poverty strategies connect individuals and families with change-making assets—such as Child Savings Accounts, Individual Development Accounts, financial capability training, and sustainable household energy assistance. Ending poverty strategies involve policy advocacy to remove barriers to opportunity that limit the asset-building capacity of historically marginalized communities, such as predatory lending. 
​
“We owe a great deal of gratitude to Ona Porter, who has worked tirelessly on behalf of communities across New Mexico to ensure that all residents can prosper and thrive”, Abeyta commented.  Ms. Porter will continue to lead on sustainable household energy efforts at Prosperity Works. ​