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Committee bars quick‑action closing fund from being used for electric vehicle projects
Summary
Senate Bill 294 prohibits use of the quick action closing fund for electric‑vehicle projects. Sponsor argued the industry has required heavy subsidies and yielded poor outcomes in some cases; the committee passed the bill 6‑3.
Senate Bill 294, which would prohibit the state’s quick action closing fund from being used to finance electric‑vehicle (EV) projects, advanced from committee after debate over the merits of targeting a single industry.
Sponsor Senator Pugh told the committee the bill “prohibits the expenditure of the quick action closing fund on electric vehicles” and said the state had spent incentive dollars on companies whose financials later proved weak. Pugh said the move was not an anti‑EV stance but a policy choice to prioritize industries already established in the state. “This is not anti the EV industry,” Pugh said. “It's a really hard industry to be successful in.”
Opponents argued the bill is a blunt instrument. Senator Kurt said he shared concerns about incentives but worried the bill lacked strategic guardrails and would remove flexibility that state leaders and the governor need when negotiating economic development deals. Kurt urged adding requirements such as stronger business plans, clawbacks and local commitments instead of a categorical ban.
The sponsor pointed to constituent complaints and at least one instance he described where state funds were provided and private jobs were affected; he said he lacked full transactional detail but supported a legislative restriction on that particular fund as a guardrail.
Action: the committee recorded a motion to “do pass” moved by Senator Woods and seconded by Senator Green; the clerk recorded 6 ayes and 3 nays and the chair declared SB 294 passed.
Implications: the bill, if enacted as written, would prevent use of the quick action closing fund for EV‑related projects while other incentive tools — such as quality jobs programs or sales tax rebates — would remain available to eligible firms under existing law.
