Automakers prepare for battle over EV incentives

President-elect Trump spent his campaign promising to tear into electric vehicle incentives and emission regulations. A growing contingent is preparing to fight him on it.

For starters, Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, and other automakers plan to ask the incoming president to keep in place Biden administration tailpipe emissions standards that would push them toward phasing out combustion vehicles. While they don’t all love the regulations, they’ve already invested billions of dollars into EVs and just want the rules governing that transition to stay consistent, the New York Times reports. The same goes for the Inflation Reduction Act’s $7,500 EV incentives: automakers and dealers say repealing them would hurt sales and put their huge EV investments at risk.

If something does happen to those incentives, California is coming up with a backup plan. Gov. Gavin Newsom this week proposed relaunching the state’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Program to once again incentivize EV purchases, promising that ​“we’re not turning back on a clean transportation future.” Officials in the governor’s office told the Associated Press that the state could exclude Tesla from those rebates to incentivize competition, something Trump’s pal Elon Musk called ​“insane.”

Meanwhile, the $7.5 billion for EV chargers allocated under 2021’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is in safer territory. The program so far hasn’t made much progress deploying chargers, but its funding will largely be allocated to projects and nearly impossible to roll back by the time Trump takes office, experts tell Politico.

Plus, more post-election predictions for clean energy

🕰️ Every second counts: Biden administration officials say they’ll race to allocate the remaining $46 billion from four climate and infrastructure bills before the year ends, but $303 billion will remain that cannot be spent until after Trump takes office. (Washington Post)

👷 Offshore wind’s newest defenders: Industrial unions are emerging as a somewhat unlikely source of support for offshore wind and may be uniquely positioned to help defend the nascent industry’s momentum under a second Trump presidency. (Grist)

🏦 Good news for a green bank: A federal green bank program could survive the next four years, assuming the Trump administration follows the law, as its funding has already been formally committed and is supporting projects in red and blue states. (Canary Media)

🔌 Uncertainty on efficiency: Advocates anticipate a mixed bag for energy efficiency under Trump’s second term, expecting cuts in federal funding but noting that efficiency standards benefit U.S. manufacturers and have long had bipartisan support. (Utility Dive)

📢 We want to hear from you! Send us your questions, comments, and story tips by replying to this email.

💸 Support our work: The Energy News Network is powered by support from readers like you. If you like Energy News Weekly, share it with a friend! Or give today and help us keep our news open and accessible for all.

📧 Want more energy news? Sign up for our daily digests.