WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — New York State is moving forward with its goal of requiring all new passenger vehicles sold in the state to be zero emissions by 2035.
It is something the Governor talked about last year, and has been in the works since 2012. Gov. Kathy Hochul made the announcement on Thursday during National Drive Electric Week.
While Hochul signed this goal last year, she had to wait until California made their goal official because of federal regulations.
This will apply to new light-duty vehicles — all new passenger cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs sold in the state — and it is being phased-in. It starts with 35 percent of sales for the model year 2026, 68 percent of sales by 2030, then 100 percent of sales of new vehicles have to be zero emission vehicles by 2035.
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"I expect EV sales to go up. They've been up 30 percent already over 2021. That's extraordinary and that's with supply chain shortages. You talk to a lot of dealers, and the whole phenomenon we have with not having enough chips at the manufacturing facilities, we've had those issues. With that being said, our sales are still up 30 percent over last year," Hochul said.
Hochul also announced on Thursday that $10 million is being added to the state's electric vehicle rebate program. It's up to $2,000 per vehicle. The state has already done more than 78,000 rebates on EVs.
This is not a done deal just yet. There will be a public comment period because it is something the State Department of Environmental Conservation would have to sign off on.