California's situation is better than Washington State. Earlier this year Washington eliminated the sales tax break for any EV costing more than $35,000, no matter your income. Washington doesn't have state income tax, so they could only offer a tax break. On top of that, they upped the yearly license surcharge for EVs to $150 a year.
I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to offer certain tax breaks to poorer people and not allow them for wealthier people. I'm far from wealthy, but I make enough to cover expenses and save something every month, but a few years ago we were bleeding our savings due to some financial problems. For a few years there I paid no federal income tax because I didn't make enough after deductions. I was very happy for any breaks I could get. Now those breaks would just make a difference in how much I save month to month.
I do think the incentives cut off at too low a level though. There is a perception that every Tesla buyer is a fat cat who can afford to blow $100K on a car without much thought. In reality about 1/2 of Tesla owners stepped up from a car costing $50K or less and have much more modest incomes than other buyers of $100K cars. For some of us it's a major stretch to afford one. I need a car capable of road trips to California, which rules out any car with a range less than 200 miles and one with 400 would be ideal (I could get from here to the Bay Area with one recharging stop in a 400 mile car). I need to be able to get down to my father's in Morro Bay, CA and he'll likely be gone by the time the Model 3 is in production. He's almost 96 now.
