Interestingly, the people pushing this the hardest are the ones who do not ride them
Democrats want to make electric bikes much cheaper by giving you up to $1,500 to buy one
Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill last week that would give Americans up to $1,500 off the purchase of an electric bicycle. The legislation, the Electric Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment (E-BIKE) Act, is a new version of a 2021 bill with the same name and offers a more generous tax credit to more Americans for a broader range of bikes.
The new and expanded legislation would give Americans who earn up to $150,000, or up to $300,000 for joint tax filers, a refundable tax credit of 30% off, up to $1,500. The credit applies to e-bikes that cost under $8,000.
Wait, how much? You could buy a nice scooter/moped for much less.
The new E-BIKE Act, which was introduced in both the House and Senate on March 21, is backed by a much larger set of environmental groups, and is sponsored by more lawmakers. Reps. Jimmy Panetta, Mike Thompson, and Adam Schiff of California, Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, and Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii introduced the bill.
“Many people are looking to get out of their cars and get on to e-bikes not just for recreation, but also for transportation purposes,” Rep. Panetta said in a statement. “By incentivizing Americans to own and use e-bikes, we are allowing them the chance to help improve the quality of life in our communities and tackle the climate crisis in our country.”
They are? Then why do the bike ride-share businesses keep collapsing in big cities? In fairness, if I lived near the beach, I might consider one, though, I’d probably get a scooter, but, it wouldn’t be for replace my car, just for cruising up to the beach. Southern cities are not set up for biking as such. It would be good to reduce the use of private vehicles in big cities like D.C. and NYC.
While this year’s bill has more support both in and outside the halls of the Capitol, it will need Republican backing to pass the House, and it remains to be seen whether that will materialize.
I don’t see what it would hurt to vote for it, but, passing it will most likely cause the price of the ebikes to go up. And a bike that costs thousands of dollars is a perk for rich folks, not the working class and middle class.
E-bikes have increasingly been embraced by environmental advocates as the best alternative to cars and a key way to reduce carbon emissions and fight climate change. If people rode an e-bike instead of driving a car just 15% of the time, it would reduce emissions by 12%, a study found in 2020.
The general population hasn’t embraced them. Perhaps they should push them for health benefits, but, then, the same wackos also try to normalize obesity.
Read: Climate Cult Democrats Want You To Ride An Electric Bike »