Green Daily

How would you like to get a $5,000 discount on your next plug-in hybrid car? If governor Rick Perry of Texas has his way, all you'll need to do is move to one of the state's many famous smog-filled metropolises. That's right, in the governor's State of the State Address Tuesday, the governor laid out a plan that could give buyers more bargaining chips at the car lot, while cleaning up the air and giving a boost to the state's cooling wind power sector.

Basically, the plan works like this: the $5,000 incentive would encourage car-obsessed Texans who live in areas that fall below EPA air quality standards to buy cleaner plug-in hybrids. At the same time, these PHEVs would act as a giant storage facility for all of the unused wind power created at night and other non-peak hours. For a Republican Governor who's an outspoken opponent of tougher EPA regulations and biodiesel, this is a pretty big deal -- and surprisingly well thought-out.

If the $7,500 federal plug-in vehicle tax incentive is adopted, along with Governor Perry's, Texans could be looking at a $12,500 discount on their next PHEV.

[via AutoBlogGreen]