U.S. lawmakers introducing bill to give USPS $6 billion for electric delivery vehicles

August 25, 2021

WASHINGTON -- A group of 17 U.S. House Democrats on Monday are introducing legislation that would award $6 billion to the U.S. Postal Service to buy tens of thousands of additional electric delivery vehicles.

The bill sponsored by Rep. Jared Huffman and seen by Reuters would require at least 75% of the new fleet be electric or zero-emission vehicles.

Last month, the USPS said it was committed to having electric vehicles make up 10% of its next-generation fleet as part of its multibillion-dollar plan to retire its 30-year-old delivery vehicles, but could boost that if it received billions of dollars in government assistance.

The legislation is backed by some key Democrats, including Rep. Peter DeFazio, who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and Rep. Carolyn Maloney, who chairs the Oversight and Reform committee that oversees USPS.

The bill would also require no less than 50% of medium/heavy-duty vehicle purchases be electric or zero-emission through 2029 and all new USPS vehicles be zero-emission after January 2040.


Source: GM Inside News