California’s EV Rebate Project Has Run Out of Money for Regular Applicants

California vehicle buyers may be affected by recent news that the state’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (CVRP), which is expected to incentivize electric vehicle (EV) adoption, has run out of funding (via Jalopnik).

“Waitlist in effect for applications received on or after April 23, 2021,” reads the CVRP website. “Funding is exhausted for standard and increased rebates,” the site explains, noting a waitlist has now started.

Limited funding is only available for Rebate Note applicants, which is a pilot for “increased rebates to low and moderate-income residents in San Diego County and the counties that make up the San Joaquin Valley.”

The CVRP was signed in 2007 under Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, originally funded with more than $4 million, and expected to end in 2015. However, these rebates have remained a primary incentive for buyers to go green since its beginning, which begs the question – how will EV adoption in California be affected by the program running out of money.

Photo: Jalopnik

In a 2017 study from the CVRP’s administrative body which surveyed buyers, it was found that both federal and state incentives were important parts of consumers deciding to buy electric, with California’s rebate considered the most important piece.

The CVRP program has awarded nearly a billion dollars since it began, with almost $100 million in rebates deployed within the past five years. While applicants were previously processed on a first-come, first-served basis, the program’s applications have now changed to a waitlist status.

While California has set a goal to end new gas car sales by 2035, some argue that the state will have to massively update its electrical grid to accommodate the change. And without a state rebate to look forward to, California buyers may need to look to other rebate programs if EVs have any chance at taking hold by 2035.