WASHINGTON — More than 100 U.S. House lawmakers on Tuesday urged Speaker Nancy Pelosi to keep a $4,500 tax credit incentive for union-built electric vehicles in a massive spending bill.
In a letter, Democrats urged Pelosi to retain the credit supported by the UAW and AFL-CIO. The $4,500 credit would provide a significant boost to Detroit’s three automakers — General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler-parent Stellantis.
“We strongly support leveling the playing field between non-union and unionized workforces by including the added $4,500 incentive to support union-made EVs,” said the letter led by Rep. Thomas Suozzi, a New York Democrat.
Suozzi said the incentives “help guarantee that working men and women are an integral part of that success story.”
Pelosi’s office declined to comment.
Tesla Inc. and foreign automakers do not have unions representing assembly workers in the United States and many have fought efforts to organize U.S. plants.
Last month, 12 major foreign automakers, including Toyota Motor Corp., Volkswagen AG, Honda Motor, Hyundai Motor and Nissan Motor, urged Democrats to reject the proposed $4,500 tax incentive.
A House panel last month approved legislation to boost EV credits to up to $12,500 per vehicle, including $4,500 for union-made vehicles and $500 for U.S.-made batteries.
The foreign automakers said the proposal “would unfairly disadvantage American workers who have chosen not to join a union and produce more than half of all vehicles in the United States and the vast majority of American-made EVs.”
The tax credits, which are part of a proposed $3.5 trillion spending bill, would cost $15.6 billion over 10 years.
“The House Labor Caucus understands that we need jobs of the future to be as good or better than the union jobs they replace,” UAW President Ray Curry said in a statement. “The House members who signed this letter are standing up for UAW members and America’s middle class by helping to ensure that our investment through tax credits in electric vehicles leads to good paying union jobs in the United States.”
The EV proposal also does away with phasing out tax credits after automakers hit 200,000 electric vehicles sold, which would make GM eligible again, along with Tesla, although Tesla would not receive the $4,500 credit.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested on Twitter last month the EV proposal was “written by Ford/UAW lobbyists… Not obvious how this serves American taxpayers.”
General Motors applauded the effort by Rep. Suozzi and the other signers and said it supports the contents of the letter.
“GM is dedicating significant resources to manufacturing and infrastructure here in the United States, and as we deliver on our plans to create an all-electric future, GM will build on a long history of supporting unions to promote safety, quality, training and well-paying jobs for American workers,” Gerald Johnson, GM’s executive vice president of global manufacturing and sustainability, said in a statement Tuesday.
Audrey LaForest of Automotive News contributed to this story.