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President Joe Biden on Monday vowed to replace the US government’s fleet of roughly 650,000 vehicles with electric models as the new administration shifts its focus toward cleaner energy,
“The federal government also owns an enormous fleet of vehicles, which we’re going to replace with clean electric vehicles made right here in America made by American workers,” Biden said Monday.
The president criticized existing rules that allow vehicles to be considered US made when purchased by the US government even if they have significant non-American made components. He said that he would close “loopholes” that allow key parts like engines, steel and glass to be manufactured abroad for vehicles considered U.S. made
The White House did not immediately answer questions about over what period Biden planned to replace current vehicles. It could cost the US $20 billion or more to replace the fleet. The President’s “Buy America” executive order signed on Monday does not direct the purchase of electric vehicles.
As of 2019, the US government-owned 645,000 vehicles that were driven 4.5 billion miles consuming 375 million gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel, according to the General Services Administration (GSA). The US government spent a whopping $4.4 billion on federal vehicle costs in 2019, the GSA said.
Just 3,215 of the Official government cars were electric vehicles as of July 2020, GSA said. During his election campaign, Biden vowed to “make a major federal commitment to purchase clean vehicles for federal, state, tribal, postal, and local fleets.”
Biden also vowed to build 550,000 EV charging stations and spend more in clean energy research.
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