¶ Overview
Our bill directs the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to create a Ride Clean e-bike program that would provide an immediate 50% rebate to anyone buying an e-bike, up to $1,100. This new program would essentially be an expansion of the existing “Drive Clean” electric car (EV) rebate program, and would not require any additional funding. The expanded program would help those who find it difficult to participate in the existing EV rebate (working people and city residents) be able to afford a sustainable, accessible mode of transport.
The EV models currently eligible for the Drive Clean rebate average $40k. For New Yorkers wealthy enough to afford that price point, there is a debate over whether these incentives even matter. E-bikes cost an average of $2.2k. That's still expensive, but with the Ride Clean rebate, much more likely to be within the reach of working New Yorkers. It would also be the country's first state-wide e-bike incentive program.
Legislation was first introduced in September 2020 and expired with the close of the 2019-2020 legislative session, and was re-introduced at the start of the 2021-2022 legislative session in January 2021.
¶ Legislation
¶ Assembly
The 2021-2 version of the bill can be found here: A516
The 2020 version of the bill can be found here: A10974
Sponsor: Robert Carroll
Co-Sponsors:
| Jo Anne Simon | Zohran K Mamdani | Sandy Galef | Linda Rosenthal | Phara Souffrant Forrest |
| Patricia Fahy | Steven Englebright | Marcela Mitaynes | Anna Kelles | |
| Khaleel Anderson (Energy) | Emily Gallagher | Charles Barron | Emily Frontus* | |
| Chantel Jackson | Alicia Hyndman | Gina Sillitti | Jessica Gonzales-Rojas* |
*Not yet appearing on the Senate tracking page.
Committee: Energy https://nyassembly.gov/comm/?id=14&sec=mem
- Michael Cusick (63rd, Chair)
¶
¶ Senate
The 2021-2 version of the bill can be found here: S3080
The 2020 version of the bill can be found here: S9019
Sponsor: Julia Salazar
Co-Sponsors:
| Brad Hoylman | Luis Sepulveda | |
| Jabari Brisport | Gustavo Rivera | |
| Michael Gianaris | ||
| Jessica Ramos |
Committee: Energy & Telecommunications
- Kevin Parker (21st, Chair, WFP)
- Brian Kavanagh (26th)
- Timothy Kennedy (63rd) (Chairman of Transpo, WFP)
¶ Background
¶ E-Bikes
¶ Principles & Facts
- E-bikes make bicycling accessible to people of all abilities and backgrounds
- Even in the left and some traditional climate justice spaces, bicycling is still seen as a luxury, sport, or inaccessible activity
- We're trying to counter that idea and present riding as a completely viable and preferred mode for varied abilities and needs [work, commuting, shopping, etc.]
- E-bikes facilitate movement for people and paths that might not move as well or with as much capacity with a conventional bicycle, opening up cycling to new groups
- E-bikes were legalized first by Cuomo in the Executive budget in 2020
- E-bikes are a critical vehicle for delivery workers, who are often immigrants and working class
- E-bikes can range in price with an average price around $2200
- E-bikes allow users to travel longer distances with less effort compared to conventional bikes, and make it easier to overcome barriers like hills, bridges, and headwinds
- E-bikes make it easier to transport heavier goods than conventional bikes or cargo-bikes
- For many of the reasons listed above, e-bikes have great potential to replace car trips and reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT), an important metric in the effort to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector
- The average cost of EV models eligible for the existing NYS Drive Clean rebate is more than $40k, so the benefits of the current program are accrued by wealthier New Yorkers who are arguably in less need of an incentive
- More than a third of all rebates to-date have gone to a single company, Tesla, the most valuable automaker in the world
- The manufacture of electric cars is a significant source of GHG emissions, and particulate matter (PM) emissions from electric cars are only 1-3% lower than those with internal combustion engines
- Research has found that urban residents who switched from driving to cycling for just one trip per day reduced their carbon footprint by about half a ton of CO2 over the course of a year
- Another study found that emissions from cycling are 30x lower for each trip than driving a fossil fuel car, and about 10x lower than driving an electric one
¶ E-Bikes versus Electric Cars (EVs)
| E-Bikes | EVs | |
|---|---|---|
| Average Price | $2,200 | $40,000+ |
| Storage | Bike Rack/Apartment | Parking space (making it impractical for most city residents) |
| Maintenance | Annual bike shop tuneup $80 | Expensive specialty mechanics |
| Charging | Any home/work outlet | Charging station |
| Environmental Impact - Production | Light and potentially local | High and requires significant extractive strip mining |
| Environmental Impact - Operation | Light Efficient mass to movement ratio Light weight means no damage to infrastructure and very low particulate generation from small tires. |
Medium Inefficient mass to movement ratio - multi-ton car to move hundreds of pounds of passengers & cargo Extremely heavy weight means significant damage to infrastructure. EV sedans are as heavy as large trucks because of their batteries. Heavy EVs create significant tire particulates (PM 2.5) from tires that wind up in our air and our oceans. |
¶ Drive Clean - a fully-funded program for cars
- NYSERDA manages an electric car rebate program called the Drive Clean Rebate
- The program offers up to $2,000 per electric car purchase as a rebate at the point of sale, meaning the consumer effectively receives an immediate discount. The dealership must submit the paperwork.
- Rebates are based on the electric range of a vehicle when operating solely on plug-in battery power [plug-in hybrids and fully electric cars are eligible]
- Eligible vehicles range in price from $23k to $140k. The average price of eligible vehicles is approximately $50k!!
- Out of the $55 million originally reserved, more than $40M has been spent: https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/All-Programs/Programs/Drive-Clean-Rebate/Dealers
- The full vehicle eligibility rules specifically exclude bicycles and other light active transport. See rules 1, 5, and 6a. 6b would also preclude hybrid e-bikes that don’t plug in. https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/-/media/Files/Programs/drive-clean-ny/implementation-manual.pdf
¶ Similar or related legislation/programs
- Electric Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment (E-BIKE) Act, introduced in U.S. House of Representatives in February 2021, would create a consumer tax credit to cover 30% of the cost of an e-bike, up to a $1,500 credit
- Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Carmel Valley) and Congressional Bike Caucus Chairman Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) introduced the Electric Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment (E-BIKE) Act to encourage the use of electric bicycles, or e-bikes, through a consumer tax credit. (Feb 2021)
- California Assembly Bill No. 2667 (Feb 2020) would have expanded the existing state “Clean Vehicle Rebate Project” to include incentives for electric bicycle purchase (was not passed)
- California Senate Bill No. 400 (Sep 2019) expanded incentives for turning in old, polluting cars to include vouchers for bikeshare and e-bikes; additional references: press release from Calbike
- $150 electric bike rebate for residents of Contra Costa County, Colorado, funded by a county transportation tax (half-cent sales tax)
- Vermont power utility offers $200 electric bike rebate to customers; more here
- Austin, TX power utility offers up to $300 e-bike rebates to customer; more here
¶ Research and additional references
- Cycling Subsidies (EU: European Commission)
- Electric Assisted Bikes (E-bikes) Show Promise in Getting People out of Cars (UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies, 2019)
- California’s Rebate Blind Spot: Electric Bikes (Streetsblog, Feb 2020)
- Now is a great time to buy an e-bike (The Verge, Mar 2020)
- E-Bikes are Taking Off, but Public Policy Must Keep Pace (UC Davis ITS, Sep 2021)
- Electric vehicles receive rebates. Why don't e-bikes? (U.S. PIRG, Nov 2020)
- Cycling is ten times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities (The Conversation, March 2021)
- Drive Clean Rebate Primary Statistics (NYSERDA)
- It’s Time for a Federal E-Bike Tax Credit (Outside Magazine, Apr 2021)
- What's the carbon footprint of ... a new car? (The Guardian, Sep 2010)
¶ Take Action
¶ Call your NYS representatives
Use this script and toolkit to leave a message for your elected state senator and assembly member to grow awareness about the Ride Clean bill - and for their support so it can pass in this legislative session (which ends in June!).
¶ Email your representatives
Use our campaign tool to easily email your electeds. Once you're done, share the letter campaign with your networks!