California’s EV incentive carves out Rivian and Lucid

California lawmakers are allocating $135 million for a new cash-on-the-hood EV incentive aimed at first-time buyers, with price caps of $50,000 for new and $25,000 for used vehicles. A key carve-out lets California-headquartered EV makers like Rivian and Lucid qualify regardless of price, effectively bypassing the caps for those manufacturers. The program, designed to fill the gap left by the federal $7,500 tax credit, will be designed by CARB with manufacturers contributing half of each incentive, and includes additional funds to boost sales of heavy-duty EVs. The plan could face pushback from other automakers such as Tesla, which isn’t included in the carve-out.