BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Clean cars, including electric vehicles, mitigate climate warming, pollution and promote equity and consumer choice, an environmental organization said Wednesday.
“For many, switching to an electric vehicle is a move to preserve our air, our environment and our health while also saving on fuel costs,” Alice Lu, policy analyst for the Clean Air Council, said.
“Tax credits can make this switch an option for more Americans by making it financially feasible. Gas-powered cars emit greenhouse gas pollution and health-harming nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter, to name a few.”
Lu was among several local environment and clean energy advocates who gathered Wednesday morning in the courtyard outside City Hall to decry cuts to federal electric vehicle tax credits and urge Sens. John Fetterman and Dave McCormick to preserve them.
“So the first step is to make sure it's in the budget, and that's what we're trying to accomplish here."Andrea Wittchen, president of the Lehigh Valley Sustainability Network
“If it doesn't get in the budget for next year, we're dead in the water,” Lehigh Valley Sustainability Network President Andrea Wittchen said.
“So the first step is to make sure it's in the budget, and that's what we're trying to accomplish here.
“After that, who knows what this administration will do? So far, they've been blocked by the courts, and hopefully that will continue, because legally … if the Congress puts it in the budget, they have to spend it.
"But the important thing is, it's got to be in there first. If they rip it out now, that's the end of it.”
Sen. John Fetterman, in an emailed statement, said he'll "be voting no — end of story.”
“It is absurd to me that anyone would support taking away tax credits that help Pennsylvanians afford vehicles and drastically reduce emissions just to put more money in the pockets of billionaires," Fetterman said in an emailed statement.
"Combined with the disgusting cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP that so many people rely on to feed their families and keep them healthy, this bill will only hurt hardworking Pennsylvanians."
LehighValleyNews.com has also reached out to McCormick for comment.
‘Help working families’
As it sits now, the federal tax and spending bill, dubbed by President Donald Trump as the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” includes eliminating electric vehicle tax credits after this year.
Overall, the legislation “curbs billions of dollars in spending across food assistance, student loans, Medicaid and action to address climate change,” according to the Associated Press.
It also repeals or phases out more quickly clean energy tax credits passed in former President Joe Biden’s term’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
That’s where the EV tax credits come in. Under the IRA, residents could qualify up to $7,500 in tax credits for buying a qualified plug-in EV or fuel cell electric vehicle.
“These tax credits help working families afford to drive an electric vehicle and reap its health benefits and cost savings."Alice Lu, policy analyst for the Clean Air Council
“These tax credits help working families afford to drive an electric vehicle and reap its health benefits and cost savings,” Lu said.
“To put it bluntly, we need to ensure that working families can afford to be part of a cleaner future.
“Pair these tax credits with accessible, affordable and reliable public transit, and we can really see a future where serious reductions in emissions from transportation can lead to better health outcomes for all residents.”
The U.S. House has passed the bill. It’s now before the Senate; if passed there, the next step is the president’s desk.
“The Senate can reverse that bad policy,” Wittchen said. “This is self-defeating for us as a country, economically and for the health of our citizens, especially those who are least able to avoid living near high traffic areas.
“We all deserve better.”
‘Healthier air, communities’
In the Lehigh Valley, emissions from transportation are an ongoing issue — so much so that Lehigh Valley Planning Commission’s Priority Climate Action Plan focused on transportation decarbonization.
The city’s Climate Action Plan also includes a commitment to reducing overall transportation emissions 30% by 2030.
“This commitment is about making smart, communitywide investments that drive down pollution and support our ambitious climate targets.”Bethlehem Sustainability Manager Sarah DeGrendel
“A key part to achieving this goal is our unwavering commitment to electrification and clean transportation,” Bethlehem Sustainability Manager Sarah DeGrendel said.
“This commitment is about making smart, communitywide investments that drive down pollution and support our ambitious climate targets.”
In August 2023, officials in Lehigh and Northampton counties launched Lehigh Valley Breathes, aimed to monitor air quality amid emissions from the region’s prolific trucking and warehousing industries.
While the project continues, results are expected in the next year, Wittchen said.
“Of one thing we can be certain,” Wittchen said. “Whatever the specific results show, the problem of air pollution caused by tailpipe emissions from fossil fuel trucks or cars has the potential to be dramatically reduced by the introduction of more electric vehicles because of their zero-tailpipe pollution.
“Zero tailpipe pollution results in healthier air and healthier communities.”
