Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Funding Now Available and New Certified Climate Smart Communities Announced

ZEV Funding Supports Municipalities Adding Electric Vehicles to Fleets and Installing Related Charging Infrastructure for Community Use

Six Local Governments Successfully Met Criteria to be Certified in 2022 Second Quarter Round of the Climate Smart Communities Program

Funding is now available through the ZEV Rebate and ZEV Infrastructure Grant programs to help municipalities purchase or lease zero-emission vehicles for fleet use and to install public electric vehicle charging and hydrogen fuel filling stations. Of the total $5.75 million made available for this round of rebates and grants, 40 percent of the funds will be prioritized for projects in Disadvantaged Communities as identified by the Climate Justice Working Group’s draft criteria.

ZEV Rebates

A total of $750,000 is available to municipalities for eligible all-electric, plug-in hybrid, or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles purchased (or leased for a minimum of 36 months) from dealerships in New York State and placed into municipal service on or after August 1, 2020.

For qualified vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of up to 8,000 pounds, rebates are available on a tiered basis based on electric mile range. Vehicles with a weight rating between 8,001 and 14,000 pounds (e.g., trucks, vans, and minibuses) are eligible for a rebate of $7,500 regardless of electric range. See the Request for Applications (PDF) for full details.

ZEV Infrastructure Grants

A total of $5 million is available to municipalities to install hydrogen filling station components or electric vehicle charging equipment that is Level 2 or direct current fast charge primarily for public use. Equipment, supplies, materials, installation costs, electricity, and site preparation costs are eligible, see the Request for Applications (PDF) for full details. The grant match requirement is variable based on the municipality’s median household income and if the ZEV infrastructure is located within a Disadvantaged Community, as identified by the Climate Justice Working Group’s draft criteria.

More Information

DEC is accepting applications for the Municipal ZEV Rebate and ZEV Infrastructure Grant Programs on a rolling basis now through 4:00 p.m. on September 30, 2022, or until funding is exhausted, whichever occurs first.

Additional information about these rebates and grants is available at DEC’s website.

For questions about the Municipal ZEV Program, email ZEVrebate@dec.ny.gov or call DEC's Office of Climate Change at 518-402-8448.

New York's Newest Certified Climate Smart Communities

By taking meaningful actions to mitigate and adapt to climate change, six local governments successfully met the criteria to be recognized as leaders and become certified in the 2022 second quarter round of the Climate Smart Communities Certification program. Congratulations to New York’s newest certified Climate Smart Communities:

• Town of New Castle – Silver Certified
• Town of Ancram – Bronze Certified
• Town of North East – Bronze Certified
• Town of Wawarsing – Bronze Certified
• Town of Yorktown – Bronze Certified
• Town of Huntington – Recertified Bronze

Click the links for each town for a full list of their climate accomplishments!

For more details on these communities, check out the press release on DEC's website. To learn more about other Climate Smart Communities across the state, visit the Participating Communities webpage.

There are currently 360 local governments representing more than 9.4 million New Yorkers that have adopted the Climate Smart pledge, and 94 certified Climate Smart Communities, 9 silver and 85 bronze.

To learn more about becoming a Climate Smart Community, visit the Climate Smart Communities website.

DEC Climate Smart Communities Grant Program Open

The program provides competitive, 50/50 matching grants to municipalities to conduct climate change mitigation and adaptation projects, including actions that are part of a strategy to achieve Climate Smart Communities certification.

DEC is currently accepting applications for the Climate Smart Communities Grant program through 4 p.m. on July 29, 2022. 

For more details and to view the Request for Applications, visit DEC's website.