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Pictured: An electric fleet car provides community mobility, ski patrol tests electric snowmobiles, and traffic enforcement deploys an electric motorcycle. These are all eligible uses of the Electrify Your Fleet Program.
Program Overview
Fossil-fueled transportation is Vermont’s largest contributor of carbon emissions and significantly impacts the state’s economy and environment. The State of Vermont is actively working to electrify the transportation sector to reduce emissions and costs and meet carbon reduction targets defined in Vermont’s Comprehensive Energy Plan and Global Warming Solutions Act.
The Electrify Your Fleet incentive program was authorized by the 2023 Transportation Bill (Act 62, Section 21) to accelerate the retirement of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and help Vermont municipalities and business entities enjoy the benefits of cleaner transportation options. Combined with other potential federal, state, and electric utility incentives, eligible fleet owners have an opportunity to save thousands of dollars on clean transportation alternatives.
Eligibility
The total incentive pool of $500,000 is equally available to all Vermont commercial, municipal, and nonprofit fleet owners on a statewide first-come, first-served basis. Forty percent (40%) or $200,000 of the available funds will be available on a first come, first served basis to applicants who are from, or who primarily serve, historically underserved communities (such as Black, Indigenous and people of color or BIPOC individuals; women; veterans; those requiring language access assistance; and communities in disadvantaged census tracts as identified through the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool).
The rebate amount for this program has been designated at up to $2,500, no more than 25% of the purchase price, for each ICE vehicle replaced or avoided. Fleet owners are eligible for up to 20 incentives over the life of the program. Nonprofit mobility services organizations incorporated in the State of Vermont for the purpose of providing Vermonters with transportation alternatives to personal vehicle ownership are entitled to up to 5 enhanced incentive amounts of $5,000* in addition to up to 15 incentives at the standard $2,500 amount.
Funding may be used toward the purchase or lease of any of the following, as long as the applicant can demonstrate that the vehicle funded has adequately replaced the functions of the retired vehicle it is replacing or the vehicle that would have been purchased otherwise:
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Battery All-Electric Vehicles (BEV/AEV) with a base Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $60,000.00 or less;
- * Nonprofit mobility service organizations may use the enhanced $5,000 incentive to purchase or lease a battery all-electric vehicle (BEV/AEV) with a base Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $55,000.00 or less;
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Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) with an electric range of 20 miles or greater per complete charge as rated by the Environmental Protection Agency when the vehicle was new and a base MSRP of $60,000.00 or less;
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Electric bicycles and electric cargo bicycles with a base MSRP of $6,000.00 or less with a minimum one-year warranty and manufactured by a participating company in the voluntary e-bike battery recycling program, Call2Recycle;
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Adaptive electric cycles with any base MSRP;
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Electric motorcycles with a base MSRP of $30,000.00 or less; and
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Electric snowmobiles with a base MSRP of $20,000.00 or less.
All vehicles purchased or leased through this incentive program must be held by the applicant for a minimum of twenty-four (24) months and reasonable efforts must be made to resell fleet vehicles incentivized through this agreement to car dealerships participating in the MileageSmart Program, Vermont’s income-eligible incentive program for used vehicles.
To participate in the Electrify Your Fleet Program, the applicant must demonstrate how the purchase or lease of an electric vehicle reduces the greenhouse gas emissions of persons operating the motor vehicle fleet in Vermont.
Electric fleet vehicles purchased prior to submitting an application are not eligible for reimbursement. Applications must be approved and grantees must sign a grant agreement before purchasing any vehicle receiving reimbursement through the Electrify Your Fleet program.
Application Process
To apply for the Electrify Your Fleet Program incentives, fleet owners must fill out the online application form. Applications will be reviewed by a committee comprised of Agency of Transportation staff. Applicants will then be contacted via screening call to confirm applicant eligibility and provide supporting documentation. All applicants are encouraged to carefully read through the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and Program Guidelines linked below. Continue reading this page for additional resources available to help support and fund fleet electrification efforts.
Additional Fleet Electrification Resources
To ensure that all applicants fully understand their charging needs and other credits and resources available to help meet those needs, the Agency of Transportation strongly encourages all applicants of the Electrify Your Fleet Program to consider the additional resources listed below that are available to support fleet electrification initiatives in Vermont.
Vermont Community Electric Vehicle Chargers Incentive Program
Made possible by the Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development, this program provides incentives for installing EV charging that will increase Vermonters’ access to charging at workplaces, multiunit homes, and community attractions. For more information visit vermontevchargers.com.
Drive Electric Vermont Business EV Resources
AOT partner Drive Electric Vermont (DEV) offers answers to questions commonly asked about commercial EV charging incentives, fleet electrification, and business assistance. DEV also provides commercial EV industry information. Find this information and schedule a consultation with EV fleet and charging consultations by visiting the Drive Electric Vermont website.
EV Fleet and Charging Consultations
AOT partner VEIC offers free 30-minute consultations for Vermont-based entities to discuss fleet electrification and facility charging infrastructure. Interested parties should complete a simple intake survey and schedule a call time to get started.
Electric Utility Business Support
Many Vermont electric utilities offer incentives for EVs, EV chargers, and e-bikes. Contact your utility’s business support team to learn more about any resources and offers available for fleet electrification. Find your power company.
eBike Consultations
AOT partners VBike Solutions and Go!Vermont offer free electric bike consultations for Vermont households and businesses to help choose the e-bike, e-cargo bike and/or e-assist system that best fits your needs based on type of terrain and distance you intend to ride, what you want to do with your bike, cargo hauling needs, and many other considerations. To get started, interested parties should contact VBike Solutions to schedule a consultation.
Commercial Clean Vehicle Tax Credit
The Federal Commercial Clean Vehicle Tax Credit is currently under development by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The credit will be equal to the lesser of 30% of the purchase price, or the incremental cost of the vehicle. The credit amount will not exceed $7,500 in the case of a vehicle which has a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 14,000 pounds, and $40,000 in the case of a vehicle more than 14,000 pounds. Tax exempt entities can receive direct (aka “elective”) payments. The IRS is still developing the rules for this program and will soon have a pre-registration process. More information is available on the IRS website.
Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Tax Credit
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authorized a tax credit to support the installation of electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) or EV charging infrastructure up to 30% of the cost, not to exceed $100,000. Permitting and inspection fees are not included in covered expenses and equipment must be installed in locations that meet certain census tract requirements. Fueling station owners who install qualified equipment at multiple sites are allowed to use the credit towards each location. More information is available on the U.S. Department of Energy website.
Additional Information
For additional information about the Electrify Your Fleet Program please email the Agency of Transportation's Environmental Policy & Sustainability team at AOT.climate@vermont.gov.
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