California Air Resources Board

Light-duty vehicle purchase incentives play an important role in increasing the number of ZEVs on California’s roadways and achieving large-scale transformation of the fleet. These incentive projects are a result of multiple key legislative drivers, including SB 1275, SB 535, AB 1550, and SB 350, but also recognize that increasing clean transportation access and consumer awareness must be an ongoing process.  Driven by community need and guiding Legislation, the Clean Cars 4 All and Financing Assistance programs help increase access to cleaner vehicles for priority populations, including lower income households and disadvantaged communities. These programs also offer critical support to the secondary ZEV market. These programs promote ZEV awareness, education, and provide a financial stimulus to lower-income Californians to aid in the purchase of cleaner vehicles. While each program has different goals and eligibility requirements, they complement each other by providing financial tools and incentives to make advanced clean technology vehicles more affordable and achievable for lower-income consumers.  The new Electric Bicycles Incentive Project is designed to help Californians reduce their VMT by reducing barriers to e-bike ownership. Access Clean California provides resources for lower-income individuals to find and apply for all of the state and local clean transportation and energy benefits they qualify for, such as money for public transit or a new or used EV; free or low-cost home charging; and no-cost home solar.

Despite the challenges and barriers faced by lower-income consumers, demand from these projects indicates that there is substantial interest in purchasing cleaner vehicles. As these projects reach more Californians and demand grows, there is a need to further develop and improve these projects.  Each year CARB staff review these projects as part of the Clean Transportation Funding Plan and make recommendations for changes to improve effectiveness, efficiency, and consumer experience.

Below is a summary of the total incentive amount that can be stacked for new clean vehicle purchases, using CVRP, Financing Assistance, and CC4A. 

Updated Stacked Incentive Amounts for New Purchases

	Without Scrap (CVRP + Financing Assistance, at 300% FPL or lower) Vehicle Type Stacked Incentive Total	With Scrap (CVRP + CC4A, at 300% FPL or lower) Vehicle Type ≤300% FPL ≤300% FPL & in DACs
BEV	$15,000	$17,500 - $19,500
FCEV	$15,000	$17,500 - $19,500
PHEV	$13,500	$16,000 - $18,000

In addition to these purchase incentive amounts, $2,000 prepaid charging card incentives are offered to be used at public charging stations for lower-income applicants