E&E News: 37 Groups Release Federal Road Map for EVs

E&E News outlined clean energy coalition, Charge’s, blueprint for federal support of electric vehicles, noting AEE’s involvement. Read excerpts below and the full story here (sub req).

A new coalition of transit, environmental justice and electrification groups yesterday gave the Biden administration a blueprint for bending the government's machinery to support electric vehicles…

The coalition, called Charge, consists of 37 members, including large environmental groups like the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council. It also includes electrification advocates such as Advanced Energy Economy and the Zero Emission Transportation Association, equity groups like Green Latinos and EcoMadres, and a pair of labor unions in Los Angeles…

Charge is recommending a $20 billion federal fund to improve transit, especially in disadvantaged areas, including support for workers to repair and maintain zero-emission vehicles…

New rebates would help build charging stations for regular drivers at workplaces and at multi-unit dwellings like apartments. Another would stimulate large, expensive charging depots for long-haul trucks…

To receive federal funding, transit agencies would be compelled to produce a plan within one year for their fleets to reach zero emissions.

Some of the blueprint was targeted at specific programs at the Department of Transportation and EPA:

• Remake the DOT Federal Transit Administration's bus and bus facilities program to exclusively fund projects that produce zero-emissions transit…
• Extend a federal tax credit, known as 30C, that creates an incentive to build out charging infrastructure…
• Refine EPA's Diesel Emissions Reduction Act program to prioritize zero-emissions vehicles. EPA awarded about $44 million in these grants last year.
• Prioritize investments in electric heavy-duty vehicles and their infrastructure from two programs at the DOT's Federal Highway Administration. Money would be directed toward the most congested areas and disadvantaged communities.

Read the full story here.