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:
SARA GERSEN - Sara Gersen is a Clean Energy senior attorney. She is based in Los Angeles.
ONA PORTER - Ona is the Founder Emerita & Clean Energy Leader at Prosperity Works. CLEAN ENERGY PROGRAM - Earthjustice’s Clean Energy Program uses the power of the law and the strength of partnership to accelerate the transition to 100% clean energy. Read the original article on Earthjustice's website here.
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AuthorProsperity Works Staff CategoriesArchives
October 2024
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