Commie California considers paying poor people to drive electric cars

The morning flag raising at the California state capital.

"From each according to their ability"

• Coming soon - a taxpayer voucher of $21,000 for each “poor” person to drive an electric Nissan Leaf.
• This is full blown Mussolini style socialistic corporatism with the wealth being re-distributed to government approved businesses and voter groups.

The People's Republic of California  -  One longtime critic of federal transportation spending once concluded that it would be less expensive for the government to buy every new transit rider a Jaguar XJ8 than it would be to build certain new rail systems. Unfortunately, Democratic California officials may not have realized that the idea of buying people new cars wasn’t a serious proposal as much as a way to illustrate a point about excessive spending.

The unelected Democrat run California Air Resources Board is now embarking on a program that would help poor people buy energy-efficient vehicles. In one scenario posed by the agency, a “voucher” might even pay the full price for a Nissan Leaf, an electric car with an MSRP above $21,000, or for used cars with lower price tags.

In a staff report released on Nov. 19, the agency analyzes its Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program authorized in 2007. Funded by a $1 surcharge on vehicle registrations, the $30-million-a-year program is essentially a “cash for clunkers” deal. It provides motorists with $1,000 to $1,500 to retire their high-polluting vehicles reports the San Diego Union-Tribune.

The board also sponsors a pilot program that provides up to $4,000 for certain motorists to ditch their old cars and buy late-model, cleaner vehicles. The board admits that the current program is “overly complicated” and “highly bureaucratic,” so it’s looking for ways to streamline and expand it so that more people take advantage of the assistance.

 

Two new laws enable this effort. AB 8 extended the life of the $1 surcharge until 2024. And SB 459 directs the agency to offer vouchers at “no less than $2,500.” There is no apparent maximum. The law authorizes “an increase in the compensation for low-income vehicle owners as necessary to balance maximizing air quality benefits while ensuring participation.” One goal, as explained in the SB 459 fact sheet, is to promote “transportation justice.”

 

Apparently, wealthy people already are benefiting from subsidies to high-end electric car makers such as the Tesla. This law brings car subsidies directly to lower-income people.

 

The law was authored by Sen. Fran Pavley, D-Calabassas, recently named one of two Legislators of the Year by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers for her efforts to promote cleaner air.

 

In a chart in the staff report, the Air Resources Board looks at the potential “incentive” that would be needed to encourage people to buy the desired type of car. It finds, for instance, the agency would need to pay the “full cost” of a vehicle for a family of two to buy a new electric car or $18,000 for a family of three to buy a used hybrid.

 

The agency isn’t saying that it will necessarily provide such large subsidies, but the report does lay the groundwork for much larger subsidies than are now available.
 

Sucking on the Public Teat
Everyone from illegals to the poor to the middle class to the rich just can't wait to latch onto the Public Teat and suck down that sweet, sweet re-distributed taxpayer cash.