Plug In America, a non-profit advocacy group fueled by the support of like-minded followers, is the self-proclaimed “voice of plug-in vehicle drivers across the country,” with a mission to “drive change to accelerate the shift to plug-in vehicles powered by clean, affordable, domestic electricity to reduce our nation’s dependence on petroleum, improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
In their February 2021 report, Top 25 States Supporting the EV Driver, Plug In America conducted a study determining the top 25 states that have established themselves as electric vehicle (EV) leaders, paving the way for the EV revolution while setting precedents for the remainder of the United States to follow suit.
Prefacing their state-by-state analysis, Plug In America highlights the overall importance of EVs in the United States. Aside from providing consumers major savings on fuel and maintenance costs, the electrification of transportation provides states with the potential to draw new investment across sectors including manufacturing, engineering, infrastructure, and engine and battery design, subsequently generating a plethora of new employment opportunities in multiple sectors. Most important to society, EVs produce zero direct emissions, resulting in cleaner air and improved public health.
As detailed by Plug In America, rather than a simple focus on whether or not a state had current EV policies in place, this analysis gathered all state-level policies supportive of EVs, assessing their quality and impact to avoid misleading information and/or inaccurate conclusions. Policies were organized into four main categories, each policy having an associated point score, and states had the opportunity to score a possible 100 points total.
The four policy categories are as follows:
Policies supporting the EV purchase
Policies supporting the EV driver during ownership
Policies enabling EV infrastructure
Policies promoting education and outreach activities within a state
New York State came in at #6, accumulating 77 points out of the possible 100. The five states ahead of New York are...
California
Massachusetts
Oregon
New Jersey
Colorado
Plug In America summarized New York’s placement among the 25 states analyzed, which can be read below.
“New York has an EV rebate and is a ZEV state. The state Public Service Commission has held multiple workshops on transportation electrification, and the state has developed programs to fund EV infrastructure, such as DC fast charging systems. New York has also undertaken EV education and outreach campaigns, including workplace charging. The state offers some HOV lane access or toll exemptions for EVs. New York would rank higher with the passage of proposed legislation to allow direct sales from emerging EV manufacturers, and with the state joining the TCI Memorandum of Understanding - or adopting its own clean fuels policy.”
On behalf of Plug In America, the full Top 25 States Supporting the EV Driver report can be found here.