On this date in 1996, GM announced the production and sale of it’s first mass produced electric vehicle, the EV1. The EV1 would be produced from the fall of that year until the fall of 2003. However, it was available only in Arizona and California and only as a lease vehicle.
The EV1 was not the actual first electric vehicle. Clara Ford, the wife of Henry Ford, herself
drove a 1914 Detroit Electric, which got 80 miles a charge, until the mass production
of gas-powered engines led by her husband drove the burgeoning electric vehicle
industry out of business.
Since 2003, all electric vehicles and hybrid gas/electric
vehicles have grown in popularity in large part due to federal support of the
industry. Several US departments are
involved in the funding of and financial incentives for electric vehicles and the
infrastructure needed for them. These include,
the Department of Transportation (USDOT), the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Federal Transit
Administration (FTA), the Maritime Administration (MARAD), the Department of Energy
(DOE), the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Department of
Commerce (DOC), the Department of Labor (DOL), the Internal Revenue Service
(IRS), and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Some agencies may seem only tangentially connected to the
shift to electric vehicles. For example,
the FAA is in charge of implementation of use of vehicles and creation of
charging stations at airports while MARAD has the same responsibility at marine
ports. The USDA works with agricultural
communities to transition to electric vehicles.
The FTA works specifically with transitioning public transportation,
such as buses, including school buses, to EVs.
Other agencies indirectly affect the use of electric
vehicles through the support of business and commerce. The DOC supports innovation and competition
among companies in general while the SBA specifically supports small businesses
in creating and supporting technology for EV infrastructure. The DOL supports
research and development for the workforce in larger facilities with more
workers. HUD eases the expense of
purchasing and installing chargers for renters, homeowners, and multifamily
property owners. And, of course, the IRS
administers tax incentive programs for the purchase of EVs.
Cooperation among the agencies directly involved in creation
and maintenance of the infrastructure needed for implementation of a complete
transfer to low or zero emission vehicles is essential and was the impetus
behind the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) which created the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, a collaboration of USDOT and DOE. The FHWA also works with these agencies on EV
infrastructure across the US highway system.
Finally, the EPA, through its ENERGY STAR Program, develops energy efficiency
specifications for charging equipment and helps the States with the purchase of
ENERGY STAR certified chargers.
Information on the laws and regulations for incentives and
tax credits for EVs may be found here.
Environmental Statutes and Executive Orders Relevant to EVInfrastructure
