MLG’s EV goals: nowhere near the mark

The following chart put together by the Rio Grande Foundation uses data from the Alliance for Automotive Innovation which tracks EV sales on a quarterly basis. In 2023 Gov. Lujan Grisham pushed a statewide EV mandate through an unelected board. The full impact of the mandate is expected to kick in later in 2025 when 2026 model year vehicles start appearing on dealer lots.

As you can see below, while New Mexico EV sales have risen slightly through the third quarter of 2024 current EV sales and their rate of increase is nowhere near enough to comply with the Gov.’s mandates. Assuming that no federal or state changes are made to this mandate New Mexico auto dealers will face a requirement to sell vehicles that are either not available to them or that are not desired by prospective buyers who will instead head to neighboring states like Texas to purchase the vehicle they want.

This will destroy New Mexico jobs and tax revenues without any positive impact on the environment.