Plus, OBBB got rid of penalties for automakers who fail to meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards.
These standards have ramped up over the last 50 years and forced auto companies to make their vehicles more gas-efficient.
They pushed manufacturers to, for example, get into hybrids, and build some of the first modern electrics.
Now, theyll no longer have that extra incentive to get clean, emission-wise.Keep your eye on your city or stateJust because federal EV support is going away doesnt mean all government support is over in the US.
I do think well see states step in to fill the gap, says Harris.
So its worth doing a bit of research to see what incentives exist where you live.To date, 11 statesCalifornia, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washingtonhave joined together to experiment with new polices and programs that promote cleaner vehicles.And last month, in the middle of a fight with the Trump administration over California's power to set its own clean air rules, California governor Gavin Newsom directed state agencies to come up with new and innovative ways to support zero-emission vehicles.
The state still plans to phase out sales of new gas cars by 2035.Stay optimistic, EV fansIndustry watchers seem certain of one thing: Despite this setback in the US, electric vehicles are the future.
So while American consumers and automakers try to figure out how to cope with uncertainty, electric progress will continue all over the world.Expect China to continue to put out well-built and -priced EVs, and export them all over the world.
Americans are paying more and closer attention to those offerings, and eventually theres going to be demand, says Nigro.
American companies are going to have to keep upor else.
Thats the existential crisis the industry faces, he says.Yoon, the Edmunds analyst, also expects the new bill to result in short-term electric pain.
But he believes theres light ahead.
In fact, Yoon is so optimistic, he allows himself an auto metaphor.
Ultimately, this will be a speed bump rather than a true obstacle, he says.This story originally appeared at wired.com.