Electrify America is investing $3 million to provide education and awareness programs for low-income and disadvantaged communities throughout California on the benefits of driving zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) and available cash incentives.

The latest announcement brings Electrify America’s total investment in California community-based programs to $5.7 million over the past two years, as part of the company’s ongoing efforts to promote ZEV adoption throughout the state. The investment will provide support for six California-based organizations as they raise awareness on the benefits of driving ZEVs, while working to get more drivers behind the wheel of electric vehicles.

Investment in California community-based organizations is just one component of the company’s broader commitment to low-income and disadvantaged communities. In 2019 Electrify America invested a total of $82.4 million in these California communities by providing education, access, charging infrastructure and services to promote ZEV driving, including $10 million in education and marketing.

Low-income and disadvantaged communities have access to an incredibly complex set of incentives and resources, and we are proud to support trusted community groups that have a proven track record of providing the assistance necessary adopt zero emission vehicles.

—Will Berry, social responsibility manager, Electrify America

More than 100 non-profit, private and public entities from across California were invited to submit proposals to support brand-neutral ZEV education and awareness in disadvantaged and low-income communities. The six recipients of Electrify America’s investment are:

• Breathe Southern California
• Central California Asthma Collaborative
• Drive Clean Bay Area
• Ecology Action/li>
• Liberty Hill Foundation
• Valley Clean Air Now

The organizations’ programs will highlight how ZEVs today can meet many different consumer needs and provide awareness regarding the economics of driving a zero-emission vehicle. Considerable evidence demonstrates that there is a significant gap between the perceived and actual affordability of ZEVs in California, presenting a meaningful opportunity for effective, targeted educational efforts.

In addition to ZEV education and awareness, Electrify America is providing integral DC fast charging infrastructure to help spur the adoption of electric vehicles. To date, Electrify America has built more than 130 public DC fast-charging station locations throughout California and more than 480 across the United States, with plans to deploy approximately 800 total charging stations with about 3,500 DC fast chargers by December 2021.