TDW,

The government should not, in my opinion, be subsidizing the purchases of cars like the Tesla Model S or the BMW i8. These are luxury cars and anyone who would purchase them does not need a subsidy. In California purchase incentives/subsidies of up to $7,500 are offered to EV buyers but the amount of the subsidy decreases quickly as household income goes up. California is trying to help lower income families replace old and highly polluting cars. Interestingly, in California, only 70% of EV buyers ever apply for the state government subsidy. California is going to experiment with point of sale rebates to see if the 70% number can be increased while, at the same time, further accelerating EV sales.

https://evobsession.com/california-may-shift-ev-subsidies-point-sale-rebates/

http://www.autoblog.com/2017/05/15/california-point-of-sale-plug-in-rebates/