BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: SB 209
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: Corbett
VERSION: 3/22/11
Analysis by: Mark Stivers FISCAL: no
Hearing date: March 29, 2011
SUBJECT:
Common interest developments: electrical vehicle charging
stations
DESCRIPTION:
This bill provides that a prohibition or restriction on the
installation or use of an electrical vehicle charging station in
any of the governing documents of a common interest development
is void and unenforceable.
ANALYSIS:
A common interest development (CID) is a form of real estate in
which each homeowner has an exclusive interest in a unit or lot
and a shared or undivided interest in common area property.
Within a CID, exclusive use common area is a part of the
undivided common area that is reserved for use by a particular
homeowner, such as a parking stall or patio. Condominiums,
planned unit developments, stock cooperatives, community
apartments, and many resident-owned mobilehome parks all fall
under the umbrella of common interest developments. Each CID is
governed by a homeowners association board elected by the
members. The members of the CID are bound by the covenants,
conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs) that are recorded against
each individual unit. In addition, associations adopt articles
of incorporation, articles of association, and bylaws for the
governance of the CID as well as operating rules that govern the
behavior of members and their guests. Collectively, these
documents are referred to as the governing documents of the
association.
Current law voids CID governing documents in a number of
instances, such as where they prohibit or restrict solar energy
systems, low water-using plants, or displays on non-commerical
signs, including the American flag.
SB 209 (CORBETT) Page 2
This bill provides that a provision of a CID governing document
that effectively prohibits or unreasonably restricts the
installation or use of an electrical vehicle charging station is
void and unenforceable. The bill further:
Allows a CID to impose reasonable restrictions that do not
significantly increase the cost of the station or
significantly decrease the station's efficiency or
performance.
Requires the station to meet state and local building and
safety standards.
Provides that if a CID requires approval of the installation
of the charging station, then the CID must approve or deny the
application in writing within 60 days, unless the delay is a
result of a reasonable request for additional information.
For charging stations located in a common area or exclusive
use common area, requires the homeowner to agree in writing
to:
Comply with the CID's design specifications.
Engage a licensed contractor.
Within 14 days of approval by the CID, provide a
certificate of insurance that names the CID as an
additional insured on the homeowner's insurance policy.
For charging stations located in a common area or exclusive
use common area, requires the homeowner and successive
homeowners to maintain an insurance policy naming the CID and
to be responsible for any maintenance, removal, repair, and
replacement costs for the station as well as any damages
related to the station.
Subjects a CID that willfully violates this bill to actual
damages, a civil penalty up to $1000, and attorney's fees.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose of the bill . In order for electric vehicles to
proliferate, it is important that early consumers have a
positive experience. Installing a home charging station is
one of the key elements to electric vehicle ownership, and
according to the author, incidences of CIDs blocking the
installation of electric vehicle chargers have arisen. If
such prohibitions or restrictions become common, Californians
living in CIDs will be shut out of driving clean electric
vehicles. This bill seeks to eliminate obstacles that
SB 209 (CORBETT) Page 3
currently impact or will impact electrical vehicle owners in
CIDs. By facilitating home stations, this bill will also
encourage off-peak charging for electric vehicles, thereby
reducing the impact on the electric grid.
2.Getting ahead of the problem . There are very few plug-in
electric vehicles in use in California today. As a result,
staff is not aware of any cases in which a CID has prohibited
the installation of a charger. The expectation, however, is
that the market for plug-in electric vehicles is about to take
off with the introduction of vehicles such as the Chevrolet
Volt and Nissan Leaf. This bill is intended to prevent future
problems in CID by establishing standards for such
installations up front.
3.Borrowing from Hawaii . In response to an actual incident, the
Hawaii legislature last year enacted a statute voiding
prohibitions on the installation of electric vehicle charging
stations in that state's version of common interest
developments. The provisions of this bill largely mirror
those of the Hawaii statute with two major exceptions, both
relating to the installation of charging stations in common
areas. There are many CIDs, especially those that include
attached housing units, in which parking is located in a
central area that comprises part of the common area.
Individual spaces may be reserved for particular homeowners,
in which case the spaces may be considered exclusive use
common areas. In instances where a homeowner will need to
install an electric vehicle charging station in a portion of
the common area in order to be near his or her parking space,
both the Hawaii law and this bill establish requirements on
the homeowner, including the requirements to maintain
insurance, to cover repair, maintenance, and removal costs,
and to obtain approval from the association. Unlike the
Hawaii statute, however, this bill implies but does not
explicitly state that homeowners are required to pay the
on-going electricity charges associated with the charger.
Secondly, the Hawaii law requires the association to grant
consent for the installing of a charging station on common
area property if the homeowner agrees to the various
conditions. This bill states only that the homeowner must
agree to the conditions and obtain the association's approval
but does not explicitly state whether or not the association
must grant such approval. The committee may wish to consider
amendments to explicitly make the homeowner responsible for
electricity charges and to require the association to grant
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consent if the homeowner agrees to the enumerated conditions.
RELATED LEGISLATION:
SB 730 (Kehoe) requires a city or county to make available an
online building permit form for residential and nonresidential
property owners who seek to install electric vehicle charging
equipment, to approve such permits within 24 hours of receipt,
and to review the work completed under the permit within seven
days. Will be heard in the Senate Transportation and Housing
Committee on March 29, 2011.
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday, March 23,
2011)
SUPPORT: Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Plug In America
OPPOSED: None received.