Tennessee Offers Rebates for Purchase, Lease of Electric Vehicles

Buyers and lessees of qualifying electric vehicles will be eligible to receive a rebate from the state of Tennessee in a rebate program beginning June 2015 and running until the funding runs out.

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s Office of Energy Programs today announced it will offer a two-tiered rebate on qualifying electric vehicles that are purchased or leased and registered in the State of Tennessee.

“Electric vehicles are a great alternative for Tennesseans looking to do their part in protecting the air we breathe,” TDEC Commissioner Bob Martineau said. “This rebate program is a way to assist consumers making environmentally conscious transportation decisions.”

Electric vehicle dealerships will be responsible for providing the rebate to consumers after such funds are received from the State. The State will rebate $2,500 on zero-emission battery electric vehicles and $1,500 on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles sold or leased (with a three-year minimum lease term) by a Tennessee dealership to Tennessee residents, after a claim is filed by the dealership.

For the purposes of this rebate, battery electric vehicles are defined as fully electric, zero-emission vehicles that have an on-board electrical energy storage device that can be recharged from an external source of electricity. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles have zero-emission vehicle range capability and an onboard electrical energy storage device that can be recharged from an external source of electricity. In general, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles can be driven using electricity, gasoline or both.

There is currently $682,500 available for this second iteration of the electric vehicle rebate program. The rebate program will go into effect for vehicle purchases or leases made after June 15, 2015. Rebates will be dispersed on a first-come, first-served basis, and the program will remain active until funds are exhausted.

The following electric vehicles are eligible to qualify for the rebate:

Battery electric vehicles (BEV) $2,500 Rebate

• BMW i3 or i3 Rex
• Chevrolet Spark EV
• Fiat 500e
• Ford Focus Electric
• Honda Fit EV
• Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive
• Mitsubishi i-MiEV
• Nissan LEAF
• smartED and Electric Fortwo
• Tesla Model S
• Toyota RAV4 EV
• Volkswagen e-Golf

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) $1,500 Rebate

• BMW i8
• Cadillac ELR
• Chevrolet Volt
• Ford CMAX Energi
• Ford Fusion Energi
• Honda Accord Plug-in
• Porsche 918 Spyder
• Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid
• Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid
• Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid

For questions or more information, e-mail Alexa Voytek, program manager at TDEC’s Office of Energy Programs, at alexa.voytek@tn.gov or call (615) 532-0238.

Photo: 2015 Ford Focus, courtesy Ford Motor Company