California, Georgia Lay Different Roads for Commercial EV

SECAUCUS, NJ (DTN) – The U.S. commercial electric vehicle industry is staring down two roads of growth: the first is a regulatory-driven one, led by California, and the second is a market-accelerated path taking root across the Southeast.

While California still held the largest overall zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) market share of 21.6% at the end of the second quarter, the Southeast became the No. 1 region for new commercial electric vehicle sales during the quarter, with a market share of 7.1% — double the national average of 3.5% — according to data jointly issued by Atlas Public Policy and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

“The Southeast is … home to about 38% of all EV manufacturing investments and 33% of anticipated EV manufacturing jobs announced in the United States,” Atlas and SACE said in a joint report.

Georgia made up over half of the new commercial EV sales in the Southeast in the last 12 months with 3,381 total sales, more than any state in the country, according to the Atlas-SACE data.

The bifurcation in U.S. commercial EV growth came after Congress revoked key waivers in May, including those for California’s Advanced Clean Trucks rule. The revocation eliminated the regulatory certainty that California’s mandates provided to manufacturers, while leaving market-driven states like Georgia less affected.

The rollback of federal commercial tax credits — like the 45W Commercial Clean Vehicle Credit whose eligibility was accelerated to end on September 30, 2025 — has added pressure to market growth nationwide.

The loss of both regulatory authority and federal buyer incentives has particularly impacted California, where the ZEV market was built on mandated sales targets. Without that regulatory framework, the advantage has shifted toward Southeast states where manufacturing investments and market demand, rather than mandates, are driving growth.

Georgia has attracted $31 billion in e-mobility investments since 2015, including Hyundai’s $7.6 billion Metaplant America in Bryan County, which began production in October. The state is also utilizing $135 million in federal funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Deployment Program to develop Alternative Fuel Corridors along major interstates to support commercial EV adoption.