Government Nixes Incentives For Electric Motos

[advrider]

It is clear that many governments want to end the use of internal combustion engines. Politicians around the world are pushing a change from fossil fuels to electric propulsion. Without getting into whether electric vehicles are better for the environment or people, new legislation in the US sends some very mixed messages about promoting the switch to electric vehicles. Incentives for electric motorcycle purchases are out, missing from the latest spending spree.

Inflation Reduction Act

The US’s Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, enacted on August 16th, is supposed to “fight inflation, invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030.” The new legislation’s effect is wide-ranging; as part of the goal to reduce carbon emissions, the new law has provisions that incentivize Americans to switch to electric transportation.

These new incentives aim to assist the purchase of electric cars made in the US. So what’s wrong with that? Well, it seems that the current crop of US leadership, without explanation, provided no financial incentives to help Americans purchase electric motorcycles. You know, the vehicles that are generally less expensive than cars and thus more affordable for many people. And the same vehicle that takes up less space and reduces congestion. So why would Congress leave them out?

Expired Incentives

In the past, there had been incentives for electric motorcycles at the federal level, but they expired on January 1, 2022. For some unstated reason(s), Congress decided that this time around, electric motorcycles should not receive any.

They forgot

Did they just forget to include them? Could this be something straight out of a Steve Martin comedy routine:

IRS Agent: “Mr. Martin, you haven’t filed your tax returns for the last 10 years.”

Mr. Martin: “I forgot.”

Unfortunately, it is not likely that Congress just forgot to include electric motorcycle incentives. And the potential reasoning for motorcycles’ omission from the new law is not appealing.

American made and electrically powered, Congress chose not to incentivize the purchase of electric motorcycles like this Zero FX. Photo: Zero Motorcycles

No incentive for toys

Some see motorcycles as only toys, not a legitimate form of transportation. In many parts of the world, motorcycles (and scooters) make up the majority of vehicles because they are cheaper to purchase and maintain, take up less space, and are easier to store, particularly in cities. But here in the US, apparently, politicians may see them as only a toy for the rich.

Protecting the public

The other potential bugaboo could be that Congress thinks they are acting on our behalf to promote safety, not only to the riders themselves but also to people in cars and pedestrians. There has been a barrage of news about hooligan riders riding on public streets and parks, and there have been deaths of non-riders as a result. And if this is the reason Congress ignored motorcyclists, to the uninformed, all motorcyclists have to take the blame.

If Congress thinks that motorcycles are “just too dangerous,” that’s a different story, and for this article, I will not go down that road.

One incentive

Ultimately, the only place motorcycles receive attention in the Inflation Reduction Act is in an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code about a special $1,000 tax credit for electric charging stations for two and three-wheeled vehicles.

Interestingly, the amendment makes the above credit valid through 2032. So as late as 2021, the US government incentivized the purchase of electric motorcycles. And now, they are offering a tax credit to install a charging station through 2032. So why is the government continuing to incentivize motorcycle charging stations but not the motorcycles themselves?

Direct motorcycle incentives dead

Potentially the most upsetting thing about electric motorcycles’ omission from the Inflation Reduction Act is the fact that incentives for electric motorcycles are essentially dead, and resurrecting dead legislation is no easy task.

Now that they have expired, if Congress wants to enact electric moto incentives again, they will have to repeat the entire legislative process. Both houses of Congress will have to agree and the President will have to sign off on the new legislation. So unless something changes, you can pretty much forget incentives for electric motorcycles.

State incentives

Thankfully, some states still have some sort of incentives to help motorcyclists purchase and charge electric motorcycles. According to the electric motorcycle manufacturer Zero Motorcycles’ website, five states and counties have incentives for two-wheeled electric vehicles.

California, Illinois, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Arizona each have some sort of financial incentive to help people purchase an electric motorcycle. Most come from rebates, but Arizona offers a reduced vehicle license tax. However, state laws can change quickly, so how long these incentives last can change. And more states may offer incentives in the future.

Why?

So if the electrification of transportation is so vital to US politicians, why have motorcycles been left out? That’s a question you will have to ask the politicians representing you.

 

 

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