Thinking Of Going Electric? Washington Might Be The Best Place For It

WASHINGTON — Local lawmakers love to tout Washington as a state that is committed to green policies and combatting climate change. Turns out their investments in infrastructure may be paying off, as a recent study found that Washington is the best place in the nation to own an electric car.

The study from LendingTree had analysts looking at five key metrics to determine the best and worst states for electric vehicles: the number of charging ports, fatality rates, electric vehicle registrations, availability of tax credits, and the cost of electricity. Ultimately, Washington was ranked in first, because of low electricity costs and a high volume of electric vehicle registrations relative to miles traveled.

According to researchers, Washington had the fourth-lowest average cost of electricity, at about 9.92 cents per kilowatt-hour. That means it would cost under five dollars to fully charge a Tesla Model 3, researchers said, enough to travel 250 miles or more.

Washington has also built in tax breaks for electric vehicle purchases, so buyers can write off up to $20,000 off a new electric vehicle's price.

Washington also recently netted a $10.4 million investment to create more electric vehicle charging stations across the state, making charging easier than ever. The investment comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program, a program that will spend $5 billion over five years to create a nationwide network of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.

"The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is going to help us build electric vehicle charging stations in every part of Washington state," said Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). "It's going to modernize our roads for drivers from Bellingham to Walla Walla so that everyone can drive electric without hassle and create jobs everywhere in Washington state, while helping ensure America leads on clean energy."

Here are LendingTree's 10 best states to own an electric vehicle:

1. Washington
2. Utah
3. Maryland
4. Massachusetts
5. Oregon
6. District of Columbia
7. Colorado
8. New York
9. Rhode Island
10. New Jersey

By the way, despite having 42 percent of the nation's electric cars, California ranked 11th because it had high electricity costs and poor road safety.