State Rebates Available for Hybrid Electric Vehicle Purchases, Pennsylvania Governor Rendell Says

$500 Rebates Reduce Costs of Environmentally Beneficial Vehicles

HARRISBURG, Pa., July 17 -- Governor Edward G. Rendell today announced new funding for Pennsylvania's Hybrid Electric Vehicle Rebate Program, which provides $500 rebates to consumers who buy new hybrid electric vehicles.

"Pennsylvania is changing the way America thinks about and uses energy," Governor Rendell said. "Hybrid electric vehicles have been an early success in our push toward technologies that not only reduce our dependence on imported oil, but also help to clean up our environment.

"While the commonwealth continues to invest in a broad array of advanced energy technologies, the first step into the future of alternative energy for many people will be when they buy a hybrid electric vehicle."

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.

"Each of us can make a difference by demanding cleaner cars that get better gas mileage," Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty said. "Increased efficiency and fuel conservation are necessary first steps in breaking America's dependence on imported oil and cleaning the air we breathe."

By leading the way to alternative energy technologies, Governor Rendell is positioning Pennsylvania to capture a market for the development and deployment of a whole new generation of vehicles, power sources and fuels. This puts Pennsylvanians to work in dynamic new manufacturing sectors and improves the environment at the same time by relying on clean, indigenous resources to fuel the economy.

This is the second round of funding for the Hybrid Electric Vehicle Rebate Program, offered through the Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant program administered by DEP. The initial rebate offering was so popular that the program issued $1.5 million in rebates in less than 10 months.

The Governor's 2006-07 General Fund budget expands funding for alternative-energy initiatives by $3 million, including funding to restart the rebate program under AFIG.

In 2004, Governor Rendell signed into law an act that expanded the AFIG program, including offering the user-friendly rebates instead of grants to residents who purchase hybrid electric vehicles. Since the inception of the AFIG program 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.

To qualify for the $500 rebate, the hybrid electric vehicle must be registered in Pennsylvania and operate, primarily, within the commonwealth. The rebate will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis as long as funds are available. 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 hybrid vehicles. These "full hybrid" vehicles use the hybrid technology to significantly increase fuel economy while significantly reducing emissions. "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.

The AFIG program is one of a number of policy and financial tools the Rendell administration has designed to promote advanced energy projects in the state. The commonwealth is leading in other areas of advanced energy development, creating jobs and cleaning up the environment while putting indigenous resources to work.

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 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 opened last fall with $220,000 in state aid. The plant 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.

The Governor also launched a major effort last year to replace conventional state vehicles with hybrid vehicles. In the coming fiscal year, the commonwealth will purchase 30 hybrids and set in motion a process to continually build on this commitment so that by 2011, fully 25 percent of the state's fleet will be hybrids.

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:

    *  Copy of a valid Pennsylvania vehicle registration.  The name
       appearing on the vehicle registration card must appear on the dealer
       invoice.

    *  Copy of the bill of sale.

    *  Proof of the vehicle purchase.  This can be a copy of the front and
       back of a cancelled check, the finance agreement, or an invoice
       indicating a zero balance due and receipt of payment in full.

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 Cleo Arp, Grant Officer, at 717-772-8912.

The Rendell Administration is committed to creating a first-rate public education system, protecting our most vulnerable citizens and continuing economic investment to support our communities and businesses. To find out more about Governor Rendell's initiatives and to sign up for his weekly newsletter, visit his Web site at: http://www.governor.state.pa.us/.