Certain Santa Monica Residents Would Get as Much as $2,000 for an E-bike
By Zach Armstrong
A grant-funded City voucher program could soon give certain Santa Monica residents as much as $2,000 for their new e-bike.
The Office of Sustainability and the Environment is seeking $157,000 from the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program for around 75 vouchers to income-qualifying households. If approved, the City expects to receive the funding in early 2024 with vouchers distributed, following a community outreach, through three lotteries in spring of next year. City Manager David White said in a release that the program’s benefits would include emission reduction, more active transportation, local business partnerships and equitable access to sustainable transportation.
Eligible residents are those enrolled in low-income assistance programs, such as Family Electric Rate Assistance, California Alternate Rates for Energy or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or meet the Office of Housing and Urban Development’s definition of low-income at 80 percent of Area Median Income. Each voucher would provide up to $2,000 to cover bike costs along with eligible accessories.
The cities of Pasadena, San Diego and Denver have similar e-bike incentive programs in place along with a state incentive program expected soon.
