Now Is the Time for US Leadership on Electric Vehicles

The briefing highlights a rapid acceleration in US electric vehicle (EV) adoption driven by battery technology breakthroughs, state-level internal combustion engine (ICE) phase-out mandates in California and New Jersey, and large-scale corporate fleet electrification commitments from companies like Amazon and Walmart. It emphasizes the need for scaled charging infrastructure and ambitious policy goals to ensure the US remains competitive against China and the EU in the transition to decarbonized mobility.

• Technological advancements in battery design, specifically Tesla's "tabless" cell and dry electrode coating, are expected to reduce costs and increase range, potentially enabling high-quality long-range EVs to be priced at $25,000 by 2023.
• Strong demand signals are emerging from state governments, notably California and New Jersey, both of which have announced plans to phase out the sale of internal combustion engine (ICE) passenger vehicles by 2035.
• Major US corporations and utilities are committing to full fleet electrification to achieve economic savings and competitiveness, including Amazon's order of 100,000 electric delivery vans from Rivian and Walmart's plan to electrify its fleet, including long-haul trucking, by 2040.
• Scaling charging infrastructure is a critical requirement for EV adoption; for example, Xcel Energy has proposed investments to support 1.5 million EVs by 2030, and California has implemented "right to charge" legislation to facilitate installation.

APA

RMI (2020). Now Is the Time for US Leadership on Electric Vehicles. https://rmi.org/resources/now-is-the-time-for-us-leadership-on-electric-vehicles/

Chicago

RMI. Now Is the Time for US Leadership on Electric Vehicles. 2020. https://rmi.org/resources/now-is-the-time-for-us-leadership-on-electric-vehicles/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Now Is the Time for US Leadership on Electric Vehicles |date=20 October 2020 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/now-is-the-time-for-us-leadership-on-electric-vehicles/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2020now, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Now Is the Time for US Leadership on Electric Vehicles}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2020}, month = oct, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/now-is-the-time-for-us-leadership-on-electric-vehicles/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }