by New York State has some of the most productive areas in the United States, but its residents may face difficulties in purchasing America’s most popular electric vehicles. A new bill proposes to revoke Tesla’s license for direct sales in the state, which could mean the brand losing access to existing showrooms. New York State has prohibited direct sales for over 10 years, requiring all automakers to sell through franchised dealerships. However, when this law was passed in 2014, it included an exception for Tesla, allowing it to continue operating in five retail locations from which it already sells. Now, legislators want to cancel these five permits and offer them to other electric vehicle manufacturers—not because of anything Tesla did, but because of Elon Musk.
Democrats are demanding not only the revocation of Tesla’s store licenses and the denial of a new one in Colonie, but they also want the state to review the deal that allowed the automaker to lease a plant near Buffalo for $1 per year and receive nearly $1 billion in incentives. They want to reclaim the subsidies and eliminate any investments in Tesla. If Tesla is forced to close its retail stores, customers will have to travel outside the state to receive their new vehicles, although the brand will still maintain a presence in New York in the form of showrooms where people can view and sit in the company’s electric cars but not order them. The five stores Tesla currently has may be offered to competing brands, including Lucid, Rivian, and Scout.
