Is leasing eligible?

Yes, lease costs are eligible. For vehicle leases, the monthly commercial vehicle lease price should be used to determine project costs.

Leases may also be proposed for EVSE using similar budgeting.

Does MEC have a definition or guidelines you use for ‘underserved’ you could share?

Yes. Please see supplemental guidance document.

Can you give examples of outreach and engagement?

For our fleet subrecipients, outreach often means public engagement activities with the communities where the deployment is taking place, as well as availability for media events, peer networking and panel presentation to peers and industry in the region or nationally.

MEC staff and partners will also engage with community organizations and perform direct outreach during the project period in order to facilitate community-led decision-making regarding locations for new public charging stations, interest in EV car-sharing, and similar desirable project outcomes.

Does MEC have additional resources on costs of EV’s?

Yes, we have compiled a list, and it is now on our RFA web page as an Additional Resource.

Note that the information compiled is an incomplete list of commercially available electric vehicles, with pricing gleaned from our past projects, from publicly available price contracts, some direct vendor quotes and other sources. It is in no way a definitive list and should be used only as a reference resource, not as an eligibility list.

What is the deployment deadline? What is the performance period?

This project term extends well into 2026, and awarded applicant performance periods will begin upon contract and run through the end of the project. Deployments can be made any time from as soon as your contract agreement is signed to the end of the project term, according to your budget, equipment availability from your vendors and any supply chain issues, and your operational needs.

Can we use rebates if we get this grant?

Yes, you may access rebates under the federal program rules. However, the costs rebated to you are unallowable as project costs. You must report the rebate to your MEC project manager. A tax credit or rebate from any source reduces the allowable project costs in the same way. Here is an example showing the impact of accessing a rebate.

Project A takes place in a jurisdiction where there are utility rebates for vehicle electrification. The rebate is $2,500 per installed electric charging station. The project sponsor installs 10 charging stations at a cost of $15,000 each, for a total of $150,000. The sponsor’s project meets the rebate specifications, and the rebate value is $25,000. The grant cost-share agreement is 35% federal share and 65% sponsor share.

Without the rebate (project sponsor determines not to access the rebate):

               35% of $150,000 = $52,500 federal reimbursement

               65% of $150,000 = $97,500 project sponsor’s share

With the rebate (project sponsor uses rebate to reduce the grant costs):

               $150,000 – $25,000 rebate = $125,000 allowable costs

               35% of $125,000 = $43,750 federal reimbursement

               65% of $125,000 = $81,250 project sponsor’s share

Is there a scrappage requirement for this grant?

No. Project sponsors do not need to scrap/destroy an existing vehicle to access these funds for vehicle acquisition.