California Gives Luxe EV Makers a Pass While Midpriced Buyers Beg for Change
KEY POINTS
- •Gov. Gavin Newsom signed bill SB 168 granting first-time EV buyers up to $3,500 rebates starting this summer.
- •New EVs priced above $50,000 normally don't qualify, but California companies Rivian and Lucid are exempt from this cap.
- •Tesla lost the exemption after moving headquarters to Texas, though lower-priced models might still be eligible.
On July’s soon-to-launch MyFirstEV program, Californians get $3,500 off new EVs priced under $50,000 or $1,750 on used under $25,000, unless you’re Rivian or Lucid—both luxury zero-emission carmakers headquartered in California. Rivian, with its $80,000 R1T truck, and Lucid, whose $71,000 Air sedan now qualifies for rebates thanks to a surprising exemption in Gov. Gavin Newsom's Bill SB 168. Meanwhile, Tesla, having fled California for Austin back in 2021, faces $50k price caps with no exemptions, despite building Model 3 and Y in Fremont. Meanwhile, Newsom called out Trump for wrecking federal $7,500 credits and pledged to pedal clean car dominance. Rivian and Tesla stayed silent on this electric dance.
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(1 of 3)Only in California can you get a rebate to buy an $80k truck from a company born and bred here, but your affordable Tesla built next door counts as a rich outsider. Subsidies bubbly as a soap opera.
California’s EV rebate scheme sounds like a VIP club where Rivian and Lucid stroll in with a bottle service tab, and Tesla’s stuck waiting outside in the rain with a Model 3 pamphlet.
Let’s be honest: California just invented the political version of 'friends and family discount,' reserving $3,500 rebates for the fancy local kids and making EV budget buyers sweat it out.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 7/13/2026 | Author: Lloyd Lee
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