A. The Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Advisory Council is established to monitor the implementation and operation of the Program and to make recommendations to the Department regarding suggested changes to the Program, including regular assessment to determine the effect of the rebate on increasing electric vehicle sales, whether the Fund allocations pursuant to subsection B of § 45.2-1731 should be adjusted, and whether an income cap should be established to determine the eligibility of purchasers for a rebate pursuant to this article. The Advisory Council shall consider the goal of increasing electric vehicle awareness and adoption in developing and making its recommendations. The Advisory Council shall annually evaluate and recommend an increase or decrease in the amount of the rebates provided under this article to reflect the rate of inflation, as defined by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the relative price of electric motor vehicles compared with the price of traditional motor vehicles.
B. The Advisory Council shall consist of three legislative members and 13 nonlegislative members as follows: (i) two members of the House of Delegates, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; (ii) one member of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; (iii) three nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Secretary of Transportation, two of whom shall be licensed new motor vehicle dealers and one of whom shall represent a new vehicle dealer association to which a majority of new motor vehicle dealers in the Commonwealth belong; (iv) seven nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, two of whom shall represent environmental justice organizations, two of whom shall represent environmental advocacy organizations, one of whom shall represent a vehicle manufacturer association to which a majority of vehicle manufacturers belong, and two of whom shall represent vehicle original equipment manufacturers; (v) the Director of the Department, or his designee, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges; (vi) the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality, or his designee, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges; and (vii) the Executive Director of the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges. After an initial staggering of terms, legislative and nonlegislative members shall be appointed for a term of four years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. All members may be reappointed. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments.
C. The Advisory Council shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman annually from among the members. The meetings of the Advisory Council shall be at the call of the chairman, the Director of the Department, or whenever a majority of the members so request.
D. Nonlegislative citizen members shall receive compensation and shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, as provided in §§ 2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. Funding for the costs of compensation and expenses of the members shall be provided by the Department.
E. The Department shall serve as staff to the Advisory Council.