“Three weeks ago, I signed bipartisan legislation to increase the use of electric vehicles as a critical component of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in New Jersey,” said Governor Murphy. “The immediate and enthusiastic public response shows how eager New Jerseyans are to join this clean energy transportation revolution and I’m pleased to affirm that the rebate became effective on January 17, 2020, the day the bill was signed.”

While the rebate application is still under development, Governor Murphy is hopeful the Board will vote on the program by the end of the second quarter.

The legislation creates a “Light Duty Plug-in Electric Vehicle Rebate Program” to encourage the purchase of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles over a ten-year period. Specifically, the law defines “eligible vehicle” as a new light duty plug-in electric vehicle, with an MSRP of below $55,000, purchased or leased after January 17, 2020. It further provides that for the first year an incentive is offered, the amount of the incentive shall be equal to $25 per mile of EPA-rated electric-only range up to a maximum of $5,000 per eligible vehicle.”  This will result in varying incentive amounts, for example:

• A fully electric car with 200 miles of electric range or more will qualify for a $5,000 rebate
• A hybrid electric car with 20 miles of electric range will qualify for a $500 rebate

The bill also codifies the Murphy Administration’s goal of 330,000 registered light-duty electric vehicles by 2025 and directs state-owned light-duty vehicles to be electric by 2035. The legislation directs the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and Board of Public Utilities to establish goals for the electrification of medium and heavy-duty vehicles. Additionally, NJ TRANSIT will move toward zero emission bus purchases by 2032. The legislation supports Governor Murphy’s goal of putting New Jersey on a path to a 100 percent clean energy by 2050.

Additionally, the bill also directs that by December 31, 2020, and every five years thereafter, the Department of Environmental Protection is required to prepare and submit to the Governor and the Legislature a report that assesses the state of the plug-in electric vehicle market in New Jersey; measure the state’s progress toward achieving the goals outlined in the bill; identify barriers to the achievement of the goals; and make recommendations for legislative or regulatory action to address those barriers.