NC ranks in the middle for polices that make it easy to drive an electric car

A new report reveals how states across the nation are helping residents and businesses use and charge electric vehicles.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released the first-of-its-kind State Transportation Electrification Scorecard which evaluates states on their policy and program efforts to remove barriers for owners and offer incentives to buy electric vehicles.

The scorecard ranked the top 30 states (plus the District of Columbia) in six key areas: planning and goal setting, incentives for electric vehicle deployment, transportation system efficiency, electricity grid optimization, equity and outcomes.

California tops all states when it comes to enabling EV use, leading in five of the six categories. Rounding out the top 10 are New York, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Washington, Vermont, Colorado, Oregon and New Jersey. North Carolina is 19 on the list.

According to the ACEEE report, electric vehicles stand to play a critical role in reducing emissions and achieving aggressive climate goals. The report also offers recommendations that states can use to advance transportation.