Wealthy families would no longer be able to use federal electric vehicle tax credits under two amendments Republican Mike Braun of Indiana will offer to broader Senate bipartisan energy legislation Tuesday.
Braun will introduce the two pieces of legislation, shared with the Washington Examiner, as amendments to a sweeping bipartisan energy bill introduced Feb. 27 by Senate Energy Committee Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, and ranking Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Senators will vote Monday afternoon on whether to limit debate on the legislation.
“I know we need to promote vehicles that reduce our carbon footprint, but it doesn’t need to be in the form of tax breaks for the wealthy and their luxury vehicles,” Braun, who co-founded the bipartisan Senate Climate Solutions Caucus, said in a statement.
“With Bernie Sanders on pace to secure the Democrat nomination, these two bills should be a slam-dunk for legislators who want to protect the environment while limiting tax breaks for the super wealthy,” he said.
The first of Braun’s proposals would scrap federal tax credits for electric cars for families and individuals in the top two tax brackets. That means families that make more than $326,000 in joint tax returns and individuals who make more than $163,000 would be unable to qualify for the incentives, which reduce the cost of purchasing an electric car.
Braun’s second measure would limit the federal incentive to electric vehicles with a sticker price of less than $45,000. That would leave just a dozen electric cars eligible for the tax incentive, though many popular vehicles, such as the Tesla Model 3, the Tesla Model Y, the Nissan Leaf, and the Chevrolet Bolt, would still qualify.
The measures offer a glimpse into Republicans’ strategy as the Senate considers what could be the first major bipartisan energy legislation to pass the chamber in more than a decade. Senate Democrats are already planning to offer a number of amendments to increase the bill’s clean energy provisions, including by boosting its incentives for wind and solar and strengthening building codes, but Republicans will also be using the amendment process to flag their priorities and their opposition to certain climate policies.
Many Republican senators have long been critical of the electric vehicle tax credits. Oil state senators such as John Barrasso of Wyoming have led the charge to try to eliminate the incentives altogether, though a handful of Republicans have also partnered with Democrats to introduce extensions of the tax credits.
Automakers, particularly Tesla and General Motors that have hit the current ceiling for the incentives, have urged lawmakers to extend and expand the program.
