State Reopens E-Bike Rebate Application After Major Tech Issues

Minnesota is reopening its e-bike rebate application after major tech issues disabled the application form for thousands.

The new application goes live next week, with the state saying this time there should be no glitches. The official time and date is 11 a.m. on Tuesday, July 2.

Minnesota is currently offering residents 50 to 75 percent of the cost of an e-bike and its qualifying accessories with a maximum limit of $1,500. The state limited its rebate amount to $2 million for 2024, so those who are not the first 10,000 to apply will need to wait until next year.

To qualify for the rebate, you must be 15 years or older and have lived in Minnesota for the current and previous year. Additionally, you cannot be claimed as a dependent in 2023.

“Sometimes, technical errors with rebate applications can cause massive problems,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek. “If data is either presented or entered incorrectly, it can create headaches for those overseeing the distribution of funds and for those receiving them. Luckily, in Minnesota’s case, they caught potential glitches early in the process.”

The e-bike application originally went live earlier this month, but went offline quickly after a surge of applicants was too much for the system to handle. Only 80 applications were received before the portal went offline, however the state says it will still be considering those applicants for the rebate.

This time around, there will be a virtual waiting room to control how many people access the application at one time.

“This is a similar process to what major sports teams use when selling a limited number of tickets for their playoff games,” the state’s revenue department said in a statement.

Newsweek has reached out to the Minnesota’s Department of Revenue via email for comment.

Once residents get past the waiting room, they then have 15 minutes to fill out the form and hit submit. The state said the application will only be open for a limited time until roughly 10,000 applications are accepted.

“I do believe the state has found the bottlenecks, especially in having people placed in a waiting room, much like sports ticketing has been done during high demand times,” Kevin Thompson, a finance expert and the founder/CEO of 9i Capital Group, told Newsweek.

Still, Thompson said he fears placing a time limit on the applications could cause some to be kicked back due to errors.

“Although they have found a solution for the demand issue, they are causing another issue forcing clocks on the completion of the application,” he said. “There may be unintended consequences.”

If you are still trying to apply during that time, you’ll be notified you have to wait until next year. Those interested will see a link to the application emailed the day before it opens as long as you’ve signed up to follow the state rebate emails.