FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 28, 2024
Contacts:
Travis Madsen, Southwest Energy Efficiency Project
Ona Porter, Prosperity Works
[SANTA FE, NM] – Today, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission approved El Paso Electric’s (EPE) 2024-26 Transportation Electrification Plan, authorizing EPE to spend up to $11.6 million to support electric vehicle (EV) deployment in its service territory over the next three years. This represents a more than 20-fold increase in the scale of EPE’s electric transportation offerings.
“By investing in electric vehicles, El Paso Electric is helping its customers save money while cleaning up our air,” said Travis Madsen, Transportation Program Director at the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP). “Every customer should take a close look at how this new plan can help you get where you need to go for less.”
EPE’s EV plan includes a wide range of support for residential, commercial, and institutional customers to assist with planning transportation electrification projects, installing EV charging stations, and deploying EVs; along with customer education and marketing initiatives to help people understand how EVs can save them money while helping to reduce air pollution and slow climate change.
Notably, the NM PRC approved a utility-funded EV rebate for low-income customers (defined as those with a household adjusted gross income of less than 200% of the federal poverty level). Specifically, EPE will be offering 50 rebates of $4,000 for the purchase of a new or used EV. The rebates will stack with the federal EV tax credit of up to $7,500 for a new EV or up to $4,000 for a used EV, as well as with the newly-approved state EV tax credit of $3,000 for a new EV or $2,000 for a used plug-in hybrid EV. These rebates are designed to be available via vehicle dealers (and not via private sale). Customers who obtain a vehicle using any of these credits can work with EPE to obtain additional financial support for installing necessary charging infrastructure at homes or businesses that the utility serves. Additionally, the plan will include 140 rebates for customers who purchase electric bicycles.
“The point of sale discounts for electric vehicles and bikes that were approved today are precisely what limited income New Mexicans need to participate in the electric transportation revolution,” said Ona Porter, Founder Emerita and clean energy leader at Prosperity Works. “With this decision, both EPE and the NM PRC affirm our understanding that we cannot reach our climate goals without including everyone in the purchase and use of the technologies that improve collective wellbeing.”
The EV rebate was included after advocacy by Mr. Madsen, representing the Coalition for Clean Affordable Energy (CCAE), along with Ms. Porter. They noted that realizing the full potential of EVs to help people save money and to reduce air pollution will require more of them on the road.
EVs are a critical tool that can help families in southern New Mexico save money. SWEEP estimates that a typical household in the area, driving combustion vehicles, spends about $2,700 per year on fuel. If that typical household switched to EVs and charged them at home and at night, when demand for electricity is typically low, and used EPE’s EV charging incentive credit for the best electricity rate, the family would save as much as $2,600 per year on fuel; with additional savings coming from the fact that EVs need less maintenance than combustion cars.
Statewide, if New Mexico electrified all of its cars and trucks, SWEEP estimates total benefits in the range of $50 billion through 2050, including savings on driving, improved public health, less climate change, and savings on electricity that come from using our grid more efficiently.
“EV rebates for low-income New Mexicans will put more of them on our roads.” said Cara Lynch, attorney for CCAE and Prosperity Works. “The benefits to the electric grid take place only when EVs are driven. More than 60% of customers in EPE’s territory experience being low-income.”
SWEEP expects that the cost of the plan will be more than covered by the additional revenue that EV drivers put into the electricity system when they charge their vehicles. Instead of paying for gasoline, EV drivers will be redirecting that money toward electricity service. The more EVs that customers or visitors drive in southern New Mexico, the more money EPE will be able to invest in infrastructure to support more EVs. That helps put downward pressure on the rates that all electricity customers pay, whether they drive an EV or not.
“New Mexico is speeding ahead toward a clean, efficient and affordable transportation future,” concluded Madsen. “El Paso Electric’s new transportation electrification plan aligns well with recent steps taken by Governor Lujan Grisham and state leaders, including the adoption of the Advanced Clean Cars and Trucks Program, the creation of a new state EV tax credit, and the authorization of a statewide Clean Fuel Standard.”
CCAE and Prosperity Works were represented before the NM PRC by counsel Charles de Saillan and Cara Lynch. For more details about the plan and the case, see Public Regulation Commission Docket No. 23-00231-UT.
###
The Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) is a public interest organization promoting greater energy efficiency and clean transportation in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. swenergy.org
Prosperity Works builds the capacity of communities and organizations, and advocates for policies that generate economic prosperity for all New Mexicans. prosperityworks.net
