OLYMPIA — A program that offered rebates for the purchase or lease of an electric vehicle ended Monday when it exhausted its funding sooner than anticipated.
The Electric Vehicle Instant Rebate Program that provided on-the-spot rebates at the point of sale or lease ran out of $45 million in funding about nine months sooner than it had planned, According the state Department of Commerce.
Launched on Aug. 1, the program was intended to run through the spring. Instead, it lasted less than 90 days.
The program was aimed at low-income drivers unable to purchase an EV due to cost. Washington residents who earned up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level were eligible to receive a rebate of up to $9,000 for a new EV lease of three years or more, or $5,000 for the purchase of a new EV or a two-year lease.
More than 6,000 people took advantage of the program, which was funded from state general funds.
Four Port Angeles auto dealerships participated in the program: Koenig Subaru, Price Ford Lincoln, Ruddell Auto and Wilder Auto.
