Tompkins County wins state funding for 7 electric vehicles

Tompkins County will use a state grant of more than $52,000 toward seven battery-powered electric vehicles.

The funding for Tompkins County is part of more than $567,000 that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) awarded to 10 communities. They’ll use the money to purchase or lease zero-emission light- and medium-duty fleet vehicles through DEC’s Municipal Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Rebate program. 

The vehicles will help New York reach the greenhouse-gas emission reduction directives of the state’s climate law, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act), the DEC said in a Dec. 5 news release. 

“New York is leading the nation in reducing emissions and aggressively investing in clean transportation vehicles and infrastructure to help reach our climate goals,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. “The ZEV Rebate Program is making it more affordable for communities to green their fleets and make the switch to cleaner vehicles, resulting in lower fuel costs for taxpayers. DEC is pleased to support municipalities in their efforts to transition municipal fleets to these clean alternatives.”

The 2022 round of the Municipal ZEV Rebate program made 12 awards to 10 municipalities, supporting 76 fully electric fleet vehicles, including the program’s first award for a medium-duty vehicle, an E-Transit cargo van in Erie County. 

Tompkins County is the only municipality in Central New York awarded funding in this disbursement.

The DEC Municipal ZEV Rebate program “continues to support” municipal efforts to mitigate climate change, the department contends. Of the funding awarded, $545,000 went to municipalities that contain “disadvantaged communities,” as identified by the Climate Justice Working Group’s draft criteria. 

Since its inception in 2016, the ZEV Rebate Program has awarded a total of more than $1.5 million (including this round) toward the purchase or lease of 114 plug-in hybrid vehicles and 182 all-electric vehicles. 

The funding was provided through New York’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF). 

The 2022-23 state budget includes an increase in the EPF from $300 million to $400 million, “the highest-ever level of funding in the program’s history,” per the DEC. 

The EPF supports climate-change mitigation and adaptation efforts, improves agricultural resources to promote sustainable agriculture, protects water sources, advances conservation efforts, and provides recreational opportunities for New Yorkers.