Treasury & IRS give more than $2B toward 300K ‘clean’ vehicles so far in 2024
Officials from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and IRS on Tuesday highlighted they have given more than $2 billion in incentives toward the delivery of more than 300,000 “clean” vehicles so far this year.
The agencies said they gave those incentives since Jan. 1 to be used for retailing of electric vehicles and hybrids.
The Inflation Reduction Act created a path to transfer the 30D clean vehicle credit of up to $7,500 and 25E previously owned clean vehicle credit of up to $4,000 to registered dealers.
Of the more than 300,000 advance payments that have been issued, officials said more than 250,000 are for tax credits related to new clean vehicles.
Treasury and the IRS said the option to transfer the tax credit to the dealer is very popular, with 93% of new clean vehicle transactions and more than 85% of used clean vehicle transactions reported through IRS Energy Credits Online involving a transfer of the credit to the dealer.
Officials explained this mechanism gives consumers a significant upfront discount and extends the reach of the credits by making the credit available at the point of sale rather than when buyers file their taxes.
Treasury and the IRS noted that researchers have found that consumers overwhelmingly prefer an immediate rebate at point of sale.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act is lowering upfront costs for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, saving Americans more than $2 billion since January. These savings are giving consumers new choices and helping automakers and dealers to attract new customers and grow their businesses,” Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen said in a news release.
“Consumers will save an average of $21,000 on fuel and maintenance over the lifetime of their vehicles and be protected from the volatility of gasoline prices,” Yellen added.