On Thursday, February 15th, 2018 the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) released its draft plan for investing the funds the state is set to receive as part of the VW Settlement and is seeking public input. The draft plan is structured in three phases, so the MPCA can seek additional input and make changes as needed along the way. This draft plan addresses Phase 1 (2018-2019) only. The state plans to invest 25 percent of the overall funds ($11.75 million) during this period. The MPCA will manage the VW settlement funds through five grant programs and will target programs with the following percentages of available funds:
- School bus replacements: 20%
- Heavy-duty on-road vehicles: 35%
- Heavy-duty off-road vehicles: 15%
- Heavy-duty electric vehicles: 15%
- Electric vehicle charging stations: 15%
For EV charging, the program will fund up to 80 percent of the cost of charging stations in public locations and up to 60 percent of the cost of charging stations in workplaces and multi-unit dwellings.
The MPCA will accept comments through 4:00 PM on March 19, 2018.
(hat tip to James Hall)
