House Passes Bill Providing Financial Assistance for Residential EV Charging Stations

The House yesterday passed House Bill 13S2 by a vote of 21-13-7. Seven absences. Was their an afternoon Phillies game today? Early Happy Hour? The bill would provide financial assistance for installing in-home electric vehicle (EV) chargers for low-income Delawareans. The bill would cover up to 90% of the purchase and installation costs for home electric vehicle chargers for applicants who are at or below 300% of the federal poverty level.

And of course all the Republicans (who were there) voted no and all Democrats (who were there) voted yes.

Delaware’s recently adopted Advanced Clean Car II program seeks to bring more electric vehicles into the state. But one major public concern with it is the financial barrier low-income houses face when transitioning to EVs.

For other applicants, the program may offer assistance covering up to 50% of the costs.

Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility Director Drew Slater says the rebate incentivizes residents, regardless of income, to install home chargers as the state pushes for more electrification. Slater explains the program funding would come from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative — a carbon cap-and-invest model — and there would be no additional burden on the state’s budget.

HOUSE BILL 13S2 – DIRECTING DNREC & DOT TO ASSESS AVAILABILITY OF RESIDENTIAL CHARGING STATIONS IN HIGH NEED AREAS	Currrent Status – House Passes
House Sponsors – Phillips, Heffernan, Longhurst, Williams, Baumbach, Griffith, Osienski, Wilson-Anton	Senate Sponsors – McBride, Hansen, Huxtable, Poore, Sokola, Walsh
House Yes Votes – Baumbach Bush Carson Cooke Griffith Harris Heffernan Johnson Lambert Longhurst Lynn Minor-Brown Moore Morrison Neal Osienski Parker-Selby Phillips Romer Schwartzkopf Williams Wilson-Anton	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes – Collins Gray Hilovsky Jones-Giltner, Morris Postles Ramone Short Shupe Smith Spiegelman Vanderwende Yearick	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting – Bolden Chukwuocha Dorsey-Walker Dukes Heffernan Hensley Matthews	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

Bill sponsor State Representative Sophie Philips: “Transitioning to electric vehicles will help reduce harmful air pollution and carbon emissions. EVs also have lower costs of ownership. They require less maintenance and electricity is cheaper than gas. On top of all these benefits, EVs are more fun to drive! I want to make it easier for more Delawareans to go electric. Electric vehicles are the future and we want to make sure Delawareans aren’t left behind!”