Electric vehicle subsidies largely steal from the poor and middle classes to give to the rich. It’s time to stop this picking of winners and losers.

Electric vehicles (EVs) remain a darling of the “Keep It in the Ground” folks, who tout them as the beginning of the end for fossil fuels. Even setting aside the reality that oil and natural gas are still critical to everything automotive—from seatbelts to the streets they drive on—this uncritical adoration of EVs has led to policy outcomes that are functionally regressive taxes on poor and middle-class families.

Put simply, electric vehicle subsidies and benefits accrue to wealthier households because rich families are vastly more likely to be able to purchase new EVs. This is a natural outcome of the current state of EVs:

• Electric vehicles cost more than traditional vehicles to purchase and have dramatically lower resale values, making them too expensive (and a poor investment) for many Americans
• They have range and charging restrictions that make them an unrealistic option for single-car individuals or households, so they are most often purchased as second or third vehicles
• Wealthy families are more likely to purchase new vehicles, and used EVs do not qualify for the subsidies (up to $7,500 in federal tax credits and up to $5,00 in state subsidies)

Read more:

http://naturalgasnow.org/pay-for-your-own-electric-vehicle-please-i...