As of March 2022 ^[update], there were about 92,000 electric vehicles registered in the U.S. state of Washington. ^[1] As of 2021 ^[update], 7.8% of new vehicle sales in Washington were electric. ^[2]

In 2021, Washington was ranked by Bumper.com as the best state in the country for electric vehicle ownership. ^[3]

Government policy

In April 2021, the state legislature passed a bill requiring all new cars sold by 2030 to be electric; however, it was vetoed by Governor Jay Inslee. ^[4] The legislature passed another bill again in March 2022, which was signed into law by Inslee, which sets an official target of 2030 for the phase-out of gasoline-powered vehicles, but does not explicitly ban their sale after that date. ^{[5] [6] [7]}

In December 2021, Governor Inslee proposed a $7,500 state tax rebate for electric vehicle purchases; however, the rebate failed in the state legislature. ^{[8] [9]}

By region

Seattle

As of 2021 ^[update], 11.7% of new vehicle sales in King County were electric. ^[2]

In June 2021, Pierce County passed an ordinance requiring all new homes built from January 2022 to have dedicated parking spaces for electric vehicle charging. ^[10]

Spokane

In 2021, the Spokane Police Department purchased its first electric vehicles, with a plan of transitioning the department's fleet to electric by 2030; however, the new vehicles were met with significant pushback from officers, and subsequently withdrawn from the flet. ^{[11] [12]}

In March 2022, Spokane introduced a surcharge on gasoline and diesel used by city vehicles. The city plants to convert its entire fleet to electric by 2030. ^[13]

References