Electric Vehicle Campaigns
How should my municipality conduct our campaign?
NYSERDA’s CEC campaign scoping document notes, “The intent is for the local government along with partner organizations and volunteers to initiate and develop partnerships with car dealerships, platform providers, and/or other EV industry partners to offer local residents and businesses a variety of makes and models of electric vehicles. The offer may be promoted through ride and drive events and other outreach efforts.”
Some municipalities have partnered directly with amenable local car dealerships that sell electric vehicles. Those dealers have provided information about who in their municipality has purchased vehicles to municipalities. Other municipalities have created a tailored list of EV dealerships, EV availability at these dealerships, distance from their municipality to these dealerships, and EV sales contacts in the vicinity of their municipalities. Residents are then asked to report back relevant information to the municipality after purchasing an electric vehicle.
Municipalities can create a list of nearby dealerships that sell EVS through their own research. Alternatively, communities can find dealers that have signed up to offer the NYSERDA Drive Clean Rebate on the participating dealers list. The NYSERDA Drive Clean Rebate program offers a point-of-sale rebate of up to $2,000 to qualifying residents towards the purchase of a new all-electric or plug-in hybrid EV.
How can a community market its campaign?
HVRC has compiled a list of impartial and trusted resources that municipalities can use to promote electric vehicles and EV ownership. These can be used when tabling at a local event, for example, or when promoting the campaign on a municipal website or through social media.
EV Educational Materials
- Consumer Reports EVs Save Money - Factsheet from Consumer Reports on how EVs save consumers money
- Sustainable Hudson Valley EV FAQ - 2-page Q&A for basic EV facts
- Drive Electric - Learn the Facts - Links to educational pages on the convenience, affordability, technology, sustainability, and “fun” factor of EVs
- NY League of Conservation Voters - Plug It In, NY! Educational Fact Sheets
- PlugIn America
- Shopping Assistant Tool – Shows EVs available in your local market
- Incentives Tool – Shows incentives (tax credits & rebates) available in your location
- Events – Register your local test drive events with National Drive Electric Week and Drive Electric Earth Day
- Mission Electric – EV campaign from Empire Clean Cities
- PlugShare - Community-based for locating public charging stations
EV Campaign Examples
- “Charge Up Hastings!” EV Community Campaign
- City of Oneonta (Mohawk Valley) - EV Car Show
- Philipstown Test Drive Event with Sustainable Hudson Valley, Sustainable Putnam, & Healey Brothers
Interested in purchasing a municipal fleet electric vehicle or installing charging stations? Visit the Municipal Vehicles and Charging Stations Resources Page.