Oregon has one of the best state electric vehicle rebates in the country — in dollars.

It is one of the best — when it is available.

The benefits also may or may not be equitably distributed.

So, is Oregon’s rebate really that good?

Let’s talk about the good stuff first, the money an Oregonian could get.

The standard rebate is up to $2,500 “for the purchase or lease of a new battery electric or plug-in hybrid electric vehicle with a base MSRP under $50,000, or a new zero-emission motorcycle.”

Anyone can qualify for that.

Low- and moderate-income households can qualify for even more, up to $7,500 for purchase or lease on a new vehicle and up to $5,000 for a used vehicle. A family of four could qualify for that sweeter rebate, as long as their income did not exceed $128,400.

Those are some healthy rebate amounts, compared to what other states do. Other rebates exist that purchasers can leverage, too.

Some would argue those rebate dollars could be better spent to encourage an electric vehicle transition. How about more investment in more chargers everywhere, instead? How about investing in research to lower the overall cost of EVs and improve range? Those may not be as easy to sell to voters as what will feel like money in the pocket.

The more immediate problem with Oregon’s rebate program is that it is erratic. If you are a buyer and or buyer wannabe, you can’t count on the state having the money to pay you for a rebate in a timely way.

Oregon’s rebate program is going to reopen from April 3 through June 3, after being closed when all the money was used up. If you buy a vehicle in the new window, you get six months from the date of purchase or lease to apply for rebates. Once the new money runs out, applicants will be put on a waitlist for 2025, and maybe they will get their money then.

So with some good planning, maybe you would get a rebate swiftly. Maybe not. About $8 million is available in the rebate fund as of mid-March.

The program is popular. If it had no fiscal limits or time constraint, who knows how many millions it would cost the state.

Doesn’t it seem to you, though, that a program that is set up in this way may have a disparate impact on whom it benefits? The more hoops and limitations the more it would seem to favor those with more income and more time.

From the incomplete rebate survey data that is available, it does seem to be a program that lower-income people are less likely to take advantage of. They may also just buy fewer cars anyway. The racial identity question part of the survey data available online doesn’t clearly identify the race of buyers. We should add it’s not clear how representative the survey data is in any case, because the survey is optional. The state’s subject matter expert happens to be on leave.

Oregon’s rebate program seems good as far as it goes. But it’s unclear it is benefiting Oregonians equitably nor effectively enough.

There’s more detail about the rebate program at tinyurl.com/ORevrebate.