Republicans introduce bill that would hand US EV lead to China
Republicans have introduced a bill to eliminate the US EV tax credit in the Inflation Reduction Act, with the effect of slowing US progress on EV manufacturing, thus handing the lead in EV manufacturing to China.
How the Inflation Reduction Act helps American health, economy & manufacturing
The Inflation Reduction Act included hundreds of billions of dollars of climate spending, much of which was allocated to EV tax credits, both for personal and commercial vehicles. These credits were an extension and expansion of the $7,500 EV tax credit first introduced in 2008.
But those credits were limited to 200,000 cars per manufacturer, a cap which some manufacturers had hit and more were going to hit. So the Inflation Reduction Act improved access to those credits, removing the cap and setting up a way for the credits to be available upfront at the point of sale, meaning that lower-income buyers can qualify for the credits and get them immediately instead of waiting to file their taxes.
However, it limited the credits in some important ways as well – namely, by ensuring domestic production of electric vehicles in order to qualify, and setting limits on high-income buyers so the credits go to people who need them rather than those who don’t.
It also added a $4,000 used EV tax credit, which is limited to even lower income groups.
There are ways around some of these limitations and some restrictions have been loosened to allow industry to catch up. But these restrictions have nevertheless fueled a renaissance in American auto manufacturing, with many manufacturers announcing new factory investments in the US.
In fact, since President Biden started his EV push, oer $210 billion has been invested in new or expanded factory projects, which will create EV 250,000 jobs, with more to come.
These commitments stand to make the US into an EV manufacturing powerhouse – we’re already doing pretty well in EV production, largely led by Tesla. But Chinese EV production and demand are rising rapidly and automakers are waffling in the face of it – so government must be clear that we are committed to building this industry long-term.
The IRA also represents the largest climate commitment made by any country in the world, ever, by dollar value. The hundreds of billions of dollars allocated, largely to EV-related tax credits but also to many other climate programs, are a commitment still unmatched by any other country. As an added bonus, the bill actually brings in more revenue than it costs due to tax reforms targeting wealthy corporate and individual tax cheats.
Republicans are lying about their bill’s effects
So, no wonder that republicans, a party that seems to actively oppose anything that would benefit American manufacturing or the environment that Americans live in, would introduce an act to eliminate much of the benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act.
The new act, fittingly called the “ELITE” Vehicles Act (surely named for republicans’ elite fossil fuel donors which it aims to benefit at the expense of everyone else), aims to eliminate the clean vehicle credit for new, used, and commercial electric vehicles.
The act was introduced by John Barrasso, a republican senator from Wyoming who has received $526,425 from the oil & gas industry in this senate election cycle. Not only that, but Wyoming’s main industries are all tied to oil, putting the lie to the assertion that this act is intended to do anything more than benefit an industry which is responsible for millions of deaths per year.
The act’s advocates say that IRA credits – which are limited to lower-income buyers, particularly the used EV credit – are a giveaway to the wealthy (who don’t qualify for them), and that the credits allow Chinese EVs into the US (which they in fact explicitly disallow through the domestic manufacturing provisions mentioned above).
Notably, the act doesn’t do anything to get rid of the $760 billion in subsidies received by polluting industry each year in the US. This could be done through making polluters pay for the pollution they cause. If subsidy elimination were the act’s main concern, then that’s a rather big target that the act ignores – because, of course, the fossil fuel industry wouldn’t like it if their free license to harm the health of Americans were revoked.
The actual effect of rolling back these credits would be to make EVs less affordable for Americans, to ensure that those same Americans have more misery forced on them by pollution from the industry that bribes Barrasso, and to discourage American EV manufacturing and consumer uptake which would have the effect of handing over the lead in global EV manufacturing to China.
How Chinese auto benefits and the US is harmed by repealing the EV credit
Chinese EV manufacturing and consumer demand are both currently skyrocketing, and China is rapidly increasing exports of EVs to overseas markets – particularly Europe at the moment.
But Chinese companies would love to sell EVs in the US, and would likely love to see the government tack $7,500 onto the price of US-built EVs, which would only make Chinese-built EVs much more competitive to the pocketbooks of the American consumer. Barrasso’s bill would do exactly that – make Chinese EVs more competitive, and the US auto industry less so.
And since EVs provide local air quality benefits, which stands to reason and which we’ve already seen in areas with high penetration, reducing EV adoption would also make Americans sicker and fill up American hospitals more.
While Barrasso claims that the bill would do the opposite of the things that it would actually do, it’s hard to believe that anyone would be ignorant enough to believe it would actually have the effects he claims. We don’t think that even he thinks that – we think he’s just playing politics, and saying whatever will make his fossil overlords happy.
In short, John Barrasso, author of the act, is lying to protect the industry that bribes him.
So far, the act has only been introduced in the Senate, and has not made it through committee or to a vote. It is sponsored by 19 republican senators, many of whom come from states with significant oil industry presence. If somehow passed, it would almost certainly be vetoed by President Biden, so it is not likely to make it into law under the current government (though that could change in November, which is something to keep in mind when filling out your ballots).
But even if it doesn’t make it into law, it still functions as a way for republicans to show their intent – to cost you money, to harm your health, and to hand the keys of the future of the auto industry over to the country which the US considers its main geopolitical rival.
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Donald Trump signed two executive orders today that walked back parts of tariffs he previously imposed on US automakers ahead of a rally in Michigan to mark his first 100 days in office.
The Wall Street Journal first reported today in an exclusive that Trump was “expected to soften the impact of his automotive tariffs, preventing duties on foreign-made cars from stacking on top of other tariffs and easing some levies on car parts.”
Trump signed an executive order making sure the 25% tariffs on vehicles and certain auto parts won’t stack on top of existing aluminum, steel, or Canada and Mexico tariffs. He also gave automakers a credit to help blunt the impact of the 25% duties on imported parts that go into US-built cars.
Trump’s backpedal comes after weeks of meeting with automaker executives, and a week after a coalition that included GM, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Hyundai sent a letter urging him to drop tariffs on foreign auto parts due to land in May.
American Automotive Policy Council (AAPC) president Matt Blunt today said in response to the executive orders, “American Automakers Ford, GM, and Stellantis appreciate the administration’s clarification that tariffs will not be layered on top of the existing Section 232 tariffs on autos and auto parts. Applying multiple tariffs to the same product or part was a significant concern for American automakers, and we are glad to see this addressed. We will review the details of the executive order closely to assess how effectively it will mitigate the impact of tariffs on American automakers, our domestic supply chains and ultimately American consumers.” The AAPC represents Ford, GM, and Stellantis.
Electrek’s Take
The 25% auto tariffs implemented under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act aren’t going anywhere, and most economists say that tariffs will raise car prices and slow auto sales. This White House Fact Sheet is titled, “President Donald J. Trump Incentivizes Domestic Automobile Production.” Where’s the incentive? US automakers are just getting hit with the stick once instead of twice, and they’re thanking Trump for it.
The carrot that worked as an incentive was Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, along with the stability that came with it. All this whiplash is terrible for the US and global economy.
Read more: Killing IRA EV tax credits will ruin US EV and battery industries – Princeton study
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New data suggests that the Tesla Powerwall 3 is significantly disrupting the US solar inverter market.
The home battery pack’s integrated inverter is changing the game.
Tesla acquired its solar business when it bought SolarCity in a controversial deal due to Musk being a large shareholder of both Tesla and SolarCity, and Musk’s cousin led the latter.
The automaker kept the SolarCity operations going for a few years. In fact, it continued until after Tesla shareholders sued Musk over the acquisition, and Musk defended himself by claiming that SolarCity had become an integral part of Tesla.
Shortly after he won the lawsuit, Tesla virtually stopped all operations that came from its SolarCity acquisition, which primarily consisted of residential solar financing and installations.
Tesla even stopped reporting solar deployment. The company’s energy business now consists almost entirely of Powerwall and Megapack deployments.
However, the launch of the Powerwall 3 has indirectly brought Tesla back into the solar business, as the home battery pack features an inverter that works for both solar and storage applications.
EnergySage is a company that matches solar installers with potential buyers, and as a result, it has a wealth of interesting data about the solar industry in the US. Today, it released its Spring 2025 Marketplace report.
In the report, EnergySage revealed that Tesla became the second-most quoted inverter brand in the second half of last year:
Tesla became the most quoted battery brand in H2 2024, occupying 63% of Marketplace share nationwide. Because the Powerwall 3 includes an integrated inverter, Tesla also became the second-most quoted inverter brand. With batteries increasingly being added to solar systems—the national battery attachment rate jumped to 45% in H2 2024, an all-time high—Tesla’s growth was a key driver of the low storage and solar prices seen on EnergySage. In 2025, we are examining whether brand backlash and equipment shortages will affect Tesla’s Marketplace share.
This is also a byproduct of the increased popularity of energy storage systems when deploying new solar systems.
In big solar markets like California and Texas, the majority of residential solar quotes are attached to batteries, and Tesla is not the top quoted brand, thanks to Powerwall 3:
Powerwall was already the preferred home battery pack for many homeowners, and the fact that it now includes a solar inverter has made it even more attractive, as most home energy storage systems in the US are being deployed along with rooftop solar.
The Powerwall 3’s solar inverter integration is pushing solar plus storage costs down quite a bit.
The popularity of the Powerwall 3 has particularly hurt Enphase, a leader in solar inverter. It had 73% of the US market in 2022, and now it is down to 53%.
Despite Tesla driving prices down, Powerwall 3 is not the cheapest battery pack available. Panasonic and EG4 batteries were both priced lower on a per kWh basis than Tesla’s in the second half of 2024, but Tesla won on cost when also replacing the solar inverter.
However, it’s not all good news from Tesla. EnergySage also recently reported an increase in customers requesting alternatives to Powerwalls in 2025, partly due to Elon Musk’s increasing controversy.
If you’re interested in installing solar panels and/or batteries for your home, we recommend using EnergySage. You will be able to get quotes without any hassle and only talk to someone when you are ready to move forward. Within minutes, you can get on the path to producing your own power with solar and battery storage, including with Powerwall.
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Here’s something most people don’t know: In the US, switching to solar and battery-based energy can actually save you money on taxes. And it’s not a future promise – it’s happening right now. Under the US Residential Clean Energy Credit, BLUETTI’s eligible solar systems and home batteries qualify for a 30% federal tax credit through 2032. That means with the right model, like the AC500 Home Battery Backup, you’re not only saving on electricity, you could also get a portion of your purchase back during tax season.
Meanwhile, gas generators are quietly costing more
There’s a reason so many people have relied on gas generators: they’re familiar, accessible, and have served us well for years. But as fuel prices continue to rise and usage becomes more frequent, the hidden costs of gas generators are quietly piling up:
- Ongoing fuel expenses, especially during summer or storm seasons
- Routine maintenance and part replacements
- Stricter regulations in certain areas limiting usage times
- Noise complaints and environmental concerns
It’s not about shaming these tools—it’s about recognizing when the cost-to-benefit ratio starts to shift.
Not ready to give up your generator? Start small with the BLUETTI AC60
The move to clean energy doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Sometimes, the right first step is simply trying a lightweight alternative, like the AC60 Portable Power Station (Pioneer 50).
- Compact and powerful: 600W output (1000W surge) covers most outdoor needs
- Historically affordable: Only $269 after subsidy
- Fast charging: 80% charge within an hour
- IP65-rated for water and dust resistance – ideal for outdoor life
- Backed by a 6-year warranty, cutting down on waste and replacement costs
- Expandable to 2,015Wh capacity for powering phones, laptops, and more
Whether you’re into camping, road trips, or just want something for light backup at home, portable power stations like AC60 are an easy way to test the waters – no big commitment needed.
Need something stronger? Apex 300 is built to last
For those looking to level up their home battery backup or long-term savings, the Apex 300 offers a durable, future-forward alternative. With second-gen EV-grade batteries rated for 6,000+ cycles, this power station can last up to 17 years – nearly twice as long as typical models.
More reasons why Apex 300 stands out:
- Ultra-efficient 20W AC idle drain extends fridge runtime by up to 24 hours and boosts CPAP usage by 2.5x compared to typical units
- Built-in 120V/240V dual output with 12,000W bypass that powers 99% of home appliances, even a Tesla EV
- 2-year savings sprint when paired with one Solar X 4K Charge Controller for a massive 6400W solar input
- Whisper-quiet at 40dB, no fumes, no fuel
- Time-of-use savings made easy: Easily schedule and monitor energy usage with a user-friendly app and a clear, intuitive LED screen
- Expandable ecosystem: Add extra B300K batteries or a smart 700W Hub D1 to grow your setup as your needs evolve, from whole-home backup to off-grid RV power
This isn’t about replacing your gas generator overnight. It’s about introducing a better Plan B that’s cleaner, quieter, and built for the long haul.
Thinking about a cleaner future? BLUETTI is offering a little help
In honor of Earth Day, BLUETTI has launched a new Clean Energy Incentive Program. Gas generator owners around the world can submit basic info about their devices and select a clean power product to receive an exclusive subsidy.
The compact AC60 and other select models are already available at subsidized prices through BLUETTI’s Clean Energy Incentive Program – a practical step designed to support a smoother, more affordable transition to greener living.
Meanwhile, early access to the all-new Apex 300 Portable Power Station is now open through May 19, ahead of its official launch on May 20 on Indiegogo.
Going green isn’t about rushing
It’s about small, thoughtful choices that build toward something better – for your home, your wallet, and the planet. BLUETTI believes real change happens step by step, just like the LAFF (Light An African Family) Initiative. By walking the same path as those in need, the team can better understand and manage which solutions will most effectively help families who need affordable, sustainable energy.
So even if your gas generator still works just fine, it might be worth looking at a smarter backup. The future doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. It can start with one quiet step with BLUETTI’s solutions, and this simple step could lead to a brighter, more sustainable future for everyone.
About BLUETTI
BLUETTI is a dedicated advocate for sustainability, integrating ESG principles throughout product design and corporate initiatives. Through impactful projects like LAAF (Light An African Family), BLUETTI provides affordable, sustainable energy solutions to communities across Africa. By partnering with Leave No Trace, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, BLUETTI supports responsible outdoor recreation through clean energy solutions that minimize environmental footprints. This blend of craftsmanship, reliability, and a focus on real-world needs is what makes BLUETTI trusted in over 110 countries and regions.
Follow BLUETTI on Twitter/X here and on Facebook here.
All photos: BLUETTI
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