MW Biden officials say Americans have scored $1 billion in EV tax credits this year
By Victor Reklaitis
Treasury hails 'major milestone,' but Republicans could roll back the $7,500 credit after November's elections
Buyers of electric vehicles have been able to get a federal tax credit at the time of purchase since Jan. 1 thanks to new guidance from the Biden administration.
So how many shoppers have taken advantage of this chance to take up to $7,500 off the upfront cost of a new EV - or up to $4,000 off a used EV?
The Treasury Department announced Wednesday that there have been more than 125,000 new EVs purchased through this initiative so far, along with about 25,000 used EVs, and buyers of EVs CARZ have saved more than $1 billion in upfront costs since the start of the year.
Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo told reporters the $1 billion figure represents a "major milestone in the administration's work to lower transportation costs for Americans."
Adeyemo was asked about Republican criticism that the EV tax credit is flowing to relatively well-off Americans. GOP Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, for example, said last month that it's going to "people of means" and it doesn't resonate with "the people growing up in the trailer park that I grew up in."
Adeyemo said in response that the EV tax credit "provides hardworking Americans below a certain income threshold with an opportunity to buy a car for less money, and then to save money in terms of paying for gas (RB00)." He said Americans have been telling him their No. 1 concern is reducing costs, and the credit "helps to reduce those costs," and that "matters to Americans in all parts of the country."
For a new EV, the annual-income limits for the credit are $150,000 for individuals and $300,000 for married couples, and for a used one, they're at $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Median household income in the U.S. was $74,580 in 2022, according to the Census Bureau.
Besides income, qualifying for credits also depends on the price of the vehicle, as well as its battery materials and whether it's assembled in North America.
Republicans are expected to make an effort to roll back EV tax credits, which stem from the Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, if the GOP has sufficient gains in November's elections.
See: The $7,500 federal EV tax credit is on the ballot in November
Tesla Inc. $(TSLA)$ continues to lead all companies in U.S. EV sales, with a market share of 56% last year, followed by Ford Motor Co. $(F)$ at 7% and General Motors Co.'s $(GM)$ Chevrolet business at 6%, according to Edmunds data.
Now read: Smart ways to shop for used EVs, which now cost half as much as they did in 2022
-Victor Reklaitis
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June 12, 2024 05:00 ET (09:00 GMT)
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