New Report Shows Plugging in Our Cars Can Significantly Reduce Drivers’ Fuel Bills Creating Tens of Thousands of Jobs for California

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As California drivers struggle with gasoline prices well over $4 a gallon, and a cumulative $60 billion was spent on gasoline during the past year alone, a new economic research report to be released on National Plug In Day on September 23^rd shows that drivers may have another option that's better for the state's economy. The report, commissioned by CalETC, shows that plug-in electric cars can create nearly 100,000 California jobs and provide a powerful local economic stimulus that will benefit people of all incomes whether they drive electric cars or not. The Executive Summary and editorial cartoons (also available in high resolution for print) have been released today and the full report, fact sheet and executive summary will be available on Sunday at www.caletc.com.

“Plug-In electric vehicles stimulate economic growth by promoting transport efficiency, reducing the cost of transportation fuel and saving money for households and enterprises”

“This report shows the economic benefits of electric vehicles can help all Californians since electricity as a transportation fuel is significantly less expensive than gasoline, costing the equivalent of $1.50 per gallon,” says Eileen Tutt, Executive Director, California Electric Transportation Coalition. “Every dollar saved at the gas pump and spent on other goods and services that households want and need creates 16 times more jobs in the state. Simply put, a dollar saved on gasoline by driving cars fueled by electricity is spent largely in the state economy creating diverse, bedrock local jobs – and that money keeps circulating in the local economy.”

KEY FINDINGS

Electric Vehicles can be a catalyst for economic growth, contributing nearly 100,000 additional jobs by 2030.
On average, a dollar saved at the gas pump and spent on the other household goods and services creates 16 times more jobs than a dollar spent on refined petroleum product.
Unlike the fossil fuel supply chain, the majority of new demand financed by PEV efficiency savings goes to in-state services, a source of diverse, bedrock jobs.
Individual Californians gain from electric car deployment whether they buy new cars or not. Average real wages and employment increase across the economy and incomes grow faster for low- and middle- income groups than for high-income groups.

“Plug-In electric vehicles stimulate economic growth by promoting transport efficiency, reducing the cost of transportation fuel and saving money for households and enterprises,” said the report’s author Dr. David Roland-Holst. “These savings return as a variety of expenditures that are, on average, more job-intensive and less import dependent than the petroleum fuel supply chain. Consequently, the new expenditures have stronger “multiplier” effects on state product and create many more jobs than they displace.”

“The average California driver spends $2,400 a year on gasoline. Electricity as a transportation fuel will cut those fuel bills by one third, help families save money while cutting pollution and decreasing our oil dependence. Those are tangible economic benefits for the all Californians.” said Max Baumhefner, Sustainable Energy Fellow at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

To appraise the economic impacts of PEV deployment on the California economy, the report utilizes the Berkeley Energy and Resources (BEAR) model, a general equilibrium model. The BEAR model has been used in numerous instances to promote public awareness and improve visibility for policy makers and private stakeholders. The BEAR model has been peer reviewed and fully documented. The model considers both direct and indirect effects across the economy. This kind of empirical evidence helps to improve the understanding of the many indirect benefits of PEV deployment. While most studies only emphasize the costs and benefits to individuals or families, this one finds the action of accelerating the deployment of PEVs in the light-duty vehicle fleet actually saves money and increases employment overall because the indirect effects are so important.

ABOUT CalETC

CalETC was created over 15 years ago with a charter to promote electric transportation as a means reach the clean air goals in California. We have worked tirelessly to support all forms of electric transportation. Over the last 15 years electric off-road equipment has become commonplace with forklifts, airport equipment, lawn equipment and other types of off-road equipment transitioning to clean electricity. This transition has resulted in significantly lowering the use of petroleum in these various categories, paving the way for the next wave of on-road large-scale deployment of electric vehicles. With every major auto maker announcing production or upcoming production of some manner of electric vehicle, California is poised to continue to lead the transition of the transportation sector away from petroleum and toward electricity. CalETC will continue to support all aspects of the transition to electric transportation, working closely with our government, environmental, and industry partners to ensure success.