The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) announced that Phase One of the state's Charge Up New Jersey electric vehicle (EV) incentive program came to a successful close on Dec. 15. The program is on track to disburse an estimated US$30 million for nearly 6000 new EVs on the road across the state.
Announced by Governor Murphy in January, Phase One of the program started issuing incentives in May and provides post-purchase incentives for eligible EVs. The NJBPU anticipates Phase Two will begin in summer 2021 and provide incentives at the time of purchase.
In order to qualify for the Charge Up New Jersey incentive, residents must have purchased or leased an eligible EV between Jan. 17 and Dec. 15, 2020, in the State of New Jersey, and submitted an application for consideration by March 15, 2021. Additional requirements and funding level information can be found here.
“By any measure, New Jersey's EV incentive program has been a resounding success. New Jerseyans have even more enthusiasm for EVs than we initially anticipated and are making the switch to EVs to be part of the solution to reduce their carbon footprint and fight climate change," said NJBPU President Joseph L. Fiordaliso. "Electrifying transportation is a key pillar of our Energy Master Plan and will help us achieve Murphy's goal of 100% clean energy by 2050. We look forward to launching the second act of this popular program next year as we work toward the governor's goal of 330,000 EVs on the road in the Garden State by 2025."
To date, the Charge Up New Jersey program administrator, the Center for Sustainable Energy (CSE), has approved nearly 4500 applications and US$21.6 million in incentives. Based on the program's current rate of application approval, the administrator projects that most of the program's FY 2021 funding will be allocated by the end of the calendar year.
To ensure adequate time for residents to receive and register their new EVs and the availability of funding, Dec. 15 was the purchase and lease cut-off date. To that end, a letter issued by the NJBPU Secretary's Office states that the application portal will remain open until March 15, 2021. During this time, the program administrator will accept and review for completeness and eligibility of all Charge Up New Jersey applications for a Phase One incentive with a vehicle purchase or lease date between Jan. 17 and Dec. 15, 2020.
Prior to the launch of Phase Two, the NJBPU will engage in a public process to evaluate the program with a goal of maximizing the funding for FY 2022 and beyond.
To learn more about Charge Up New Jersey, visit here.
