On June 23, 2021 the Maryland Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) announced that the agency will purchase 40 new electric vehicles, leveraging resources from the Strategic Energy Investment Fund, administered by MEA.
In 2007, Maryland adopted California’s Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) standard, and has been working with other states since 2013 on a ZEV Task Force to support vehicle electrification, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other tailpipe emissions from vehicles. As part of this Task Force, Maryland set a goal of deploying 300,000 ZEV vehicles across the state by 2025. Maryland is just over ten percent of the way to achieving this goal, but expects to make rapid progress as EV models become more available and affordable.
This purchase of 40 EVs represents 25 percent of fleet vehicles purchased by the state in 2021, and was made possible by over $2 million from the Strategic Energy Investment Fund. Maryland State Agencies including MEA, DBM, the Department of Services (DGS), and Department of Transportation (MDOT) among others collaborate via a workgroup. This workgroup supports efforts by the agencies to convert their fleets, helping them find appropriate ZEV options and build out supporting charging infrastructure. MEA administers several other programs within the state to help drivers and fleet owners convert to EVs, including offering rebates for charging station installations and providing grants for fleet EV purchases.