Without federal, state subsidies and mandates, EVs would cost $50,000 more, a new study finds

Electric vehicle owners would pay nearly $50,000 more for their automobiles over a 10-year period, with federal and state subsidies now in place, according to a new study by the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

The true costs of an EV are hidden behind multipliers under federal fuel efficiency programs, federal regulatory credits and state EV sales mandates, strain to the grid from public and home charging, subsidies to EV infrastructure, and direct federal and state subsidies, the Texas-based conservative think thank has also concluded. 

“The Biden administration and leftist states such as California have pushed for widespread electrification in less than 20 years through government subsidies and coercive regulations, but the price you see in the lot is not the true cost of an electric vehicle,” said Jason Isaac, one of the authors of the study.

“These costs are borne by gasoline vehicle owners, taxpayers, and utility ratepayers, who are all paying a hefty price for someone else’s EV.”

The study disputed the findings of major studies that concluded that the higher purchase prices of EVs are made up over their lifetimes through reduced cost in fuel, insurance and maintenance, making EVs cheaper to own than gas-powered cars.

“Setting aside some of the questionable assumptions used in deriving such favorable economics for EVs, no one has attempted to calculate the full financial benefit of the wide array of direct subsidies, regulatory credits, and subsidized infrastructure that contribute to the economic viability of EVs,” the study states.

The study also points out that electric vehicle sales are failing to meet expectations, and Ford Motor Company is losing $70,000 on each EV it currently sells.

The authors propose that federal and state governments stop “driving the American auto industry off an economic cliff and allow markets to drive further improvements in cost and efficiency.”