DENVER — When Colorado rolls out a new version of its e-bike incentive on April 1, bike retailers will feel a bit of pain for a while.
The new program grants anyone who purchases a new e-bike a $450 discount at the register if they buy the bike at a participating retailer. According to the Colorado Energy Office (CEO), which runs the program, participating retailers will be able to file for credits on their 2024 tax return to be made whole for the credits.
“Normally, when you have a tax credit, you, the purchaser takes tax credit off of their taxes at the end of the year,” said Nancy Fox, the former owner of BV eBikes, a small retailer in Buena Vista.
Fox and other small business owners say the state’s decision to require retailers to file for credits in 2025 puts businesses in a rough position. They lose revenue and, in some cases, go into debt to cover losses.
She said that, if they're lucky, the margins on the bikes people are purchasing are between $400 and $450.
In a statement to 9NEWS, the CEO said the decision to not immediately pay these credits to retailers was made to expedite the delivery of the incentives to Coloradans.
“While only some e-bike retailers are participating in the program initially because the rebate takes so long, by January (2025) we expect that everyone will want to be part of it because the rebates will go out at least quarterly,” public information officer Ari Rosenblum said in a statement.
The CEO said officials have reached out to lending organizations to try to help businesses cover the losses for a year. Rosenblum pointed out retailers are actually eligible for a $500 credit for each bike sold, which would give tax credit worth more than the discount they offered on bikes.
He also said some retailers may choose not to participate.
But Fox said participation in the program is nearly necessary as consumers may walk away to find another retailer who offers the credit.
“There's so much competition that if they don't take it, they'll be out of business,” she said.
“It just upsets me that our government, who is supposedly business for business is hurting. A huge representation of small business in Colorado”
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