LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP, Pa., Oct 19, 2006 /PRNewswire

 

Pennsylvania already has awarded more than a quarter of the $500 rebates available this fiscal year under a first-come, first-serve program for state residents who purchase new hybrid electric vehicles, Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty announced today.

"More and more Pennsylvanians are making a difference by demanding cleaner cars that get better gas mileage," McGinty said.

McGinty stressed that while Governor Edward G. Rendell is working to promote increased efficiency and fuel conservation to improve air quality and help break America's dependence on imported oil, many legislators are taking the opposite approach.

The General Assembly currently is considering legislation that would override a recent decision by the state's Environmental Quality Board to enhance the state's Clean Vehicles Program, which sets new emission standards for new passenger cars and light-duty trucks sold in model year 2008. The program also requires automakers to make their overall fleet cleaner than would be required under a federal program.

The legislative action comes even though EQB, an independent regulatory review panel, received 4,829 responses during a comment period that included three public hearings. Nearly all of the commentators supported the enhanced state program to ensure cleaner, healthier air across the commonwealth -- all at no overall additional cost to consumers.

Cars contribute about a third of the state's smog-producing emissions. They also emit toxic pollutants like benzene. People are driving more and more -- Pennsylvanians increase their vehicle miles driven by some 2 percent every year -- so improving vehicle technology through this program will preserve mobility while protecting public health and the environment.

That is one of the reasons that Governor Rendell doubled the amount of funding for Pennsylvania's Hybrid Electric Vehicle Rebate Program, from $1.5 million to $3 million, this fiscal year. The expanded program, which opened at the end of July and runs through next year, will provide rebates to 6,000 car buyers.

This is the second round of funding for the program, offered through DEP's Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant program. The initial rebate offering was so popular that the program issued its allotted $1.5 million in less than 10 months. The program provided rebates to 3,000 residents.

McGinty urged residents to act quickly to take advantage of the new program. Rebates are offered in the order applications are received and processed, as long as funds are available.

The department already has issued 1,579 rebates -- more than a quarter of the amount available. Another 400 applications are awaiting processing, meaning as many as one-third of all available rebates may be taken. DEP receives on average about 30 applications each day.

"Based on the response to the state's rebate program, it is clear that residents are ready to embrace technologies that not only reduce our dependence on imported oil, but also help to clean up our environment," McGinty said.

McGinty provided the program update before a fleet of hybrids that Rep. Daylin Leach assembled at Ashbridge Park in Lower Merion Township. Montgomery County ranks first in Pennsylvania with 187 residents receiving rebates so far this year.

Leach, who also is a strong supporter of the state's Clean Vehicles Program, presented a similar alternative fuel vehicle display at the Capitol in August 2005 and was instrumental when McGinty and General Services Secretary James P. Creedon unveiled the Governor's plan to replace conventional state vehicles with hybrid vehicles.

The state already has 30 hybrids in its fleet, setting in motion the Governor's commitment to make 25 percent of the state's fleet hybrid vehicles by 2011.

Hybrid electric vehicles save consumers money through increased fuel efficiency, which in turn reduces America's need to import oil from foreign countries. Greater fuel efficiency also translates into lower emissions of air pollutants.

Supporting alternative energy technologies positions Pennsylvania to capture a market for the development and deployment of a whole new generation of vehicles, power sources and fuels, putting residents to work in dynamic new manufacturing sectors and, while improving the environment, transitioning to clean, indigenous resources to fuel the economy.

"Increased efficiency and fuel conservation are necessary to break our dependence on imported oil and clean the air we breathe," McGinty said. "The first step into a clean energy future for many people is when they purchase their first hybrid electric vehicle."

To qualify for the $500 rebate, the hybrid electric vehicle must be registered in Pennsylvania and operate, primarily, within the state. Rebate request forms and required documentation must be submitted no later than six months after the vehicle is purchased.

Rebates will be provided only for the purchase of the cleanest and most fuel-efficient "full hybrid" vehicles that use hybrid technology to significantly increase fuel economy while significantly reducing emissions. Examples include Toyota Prius, Camry and Highlander; Ford Escape; Honda Civic; Mercury Mariner SUV; and Saturn VUE. Other models may be included.

Flex-fuel vehicles, diesel vehicles and "mild hybrids" that use the hybrid technology to increase a vehicle's power and performance rather than significantly reducing emissions will not qualify for the rebates.

In 2004, Governor Rendell signed into law an act that expanded AFIG, including offering user-friendly rebates instead of grants to residents who purchase hybrid electric vehicles. Since the inception of AFIG in 1992, DEP has awarded $28.7 million for 984 projects in 50 counties. AFIG funds have leveraged more than $78 million from public and private fleet operators, fuel providers and the federal government.

The hybrid rebates are among a number of policy and financial tools the Governor has designed to promote advanced energy projects in the state.

Governor Rendell's "PennSecurity Fuels Initiative" will produce and use 900 million gallons annually of clean, domestic fuel -- an amount equivalent to what the state is expected to import from the Persian Gulf 10 years from now. The Governor is investing $30 million over the next five years to build re-fueling and production infrastructure to support wide distribution of the alternative fuels.

Pennsylvania also very well could be the nation's leading producer of biodiesel within the year, going from practically nowhere a year ago to a projected 40 million gallons of annual production. The state already is home to the East Coast's first, state-of-the-art, biofuels injection facility, which will replace 3.2 million gallons of foreign oil with domestically produced biodiesel and keep at home $6 million worth of energy dollars by reducing the state's need to purchase imported fuels.

To claim the Hybrid Electric Vehicle Rebate, vehicle purchasers must submit a completed form to: Department of Environmental Protection, HEV Rebate Program, P.O. Box 8772, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8772. Include the following information with the rebate form:

A rebate will not be issued unless DEP receives all required documentation.

Rebate forms, along with additional information about the program, may be obtained at DEP's Web site, http://www.depweb.state.pa.us, Keyword "Alternative Fuels," or by calling the hybrid rebate hotline at 717-214-3492.

CONTACT: Kurt M. Knaus

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

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