BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 454 Page 1 Date of Hearing: July 1, 2013 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair SB 454 (Corbett) - As Amended: May 24, 2013 SENATE VOTE : 28-11 SUBJECT : Electric vehicle charging stations SUMMARY : Establishes requirements for the operation of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to better serve consumers. Specifically, this bill : 1)Makes findings and declarations regarding transportation sector contributions to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the need to encourage infrastructure development and use of EVs. 2)Defines a variety of terms related to EV charging systems. 3)Prohibits EV charging stations from precluding non-members or non-subscribers from using the EV charging station. 4)Requires that EV charging stations disclose the total actual charges for EV charging use to the public at the point of sale, including additional network roaming charges for non-members or those without a subscription for the service. 5)Requires that EV charging stations that charge a fee for use accommodate payment methods using a credit card or other mobile technology. 6)Requires EV charging station service providers to disclose to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the EV charging station's geographic location, fee schedule, accepted methods of payment, and network roaming charges. 7)Requires that EV charging stations be labeled in accordance with federal regulations. 8)Authorizes parking facilities with EV charging stations to use appropriate directional signage to identify the location of EV charging stations within the facility. 9)Authorizes the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to adopt SB 454 Page 2 interoperability billing standards for EV charging stations, if such standards have not been adopted by a national standards organization by January 1, 2015. 10)Requires, if CARB adopts interoperability standards, that all EV charging stations that require payment, meet the imposed interoperability standards within one year. 11)Requires CARB, when adopting interoperability standards for EV charging stations, to consider industry-developed interoperability billing standards and authorizes CARB to adopt interoperability billing standards promulgated by outside authoritative bodies. 12)Requires CARB to maintain a toll-free telephone number and email address or Internet Web site to collect consumer complaints regarding violations of EV charging station requirements set forth in this bill. 13)Authorizes CARB to respond to consumer complaints, summarize the complaints they receive, and make a summary of the complaints available to the public annually. EXISTING LAW : 1)Enacts the Global Warming Act of 2006 that requires CARB to adopt statewide green GHG emissions limits equivalent to the statewide GHG emissions levels in 1990 to be achieved by 2020. 2)Requires the adoption of a state plan to increase the use of alternative transportation fuels, including setting alternative fuel goals. 3)Requires CARB to adopt regulations that achieve the maximum feasible and cost-effective reduction of GHG emissions from motor vehicles. 4)Established the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program to help implement the state's GHG emission reduction goals. 5)Requires a manufacturer of an EV fuel dispensing system, pursuant to federal law, to determine the electric charge of a system and affix a permanent legible marking or permanently attached label that discloses the manufacturer's name, the SB 454 Page 3 model number, serial number, or other identifier of the system, and the fuel rating. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill would result in a one-time cost to CARB of up to $370,000 to adopt and develop interoperability billing standards for electric vehicle charging stations and ongoing annual costs of approximately $370,000 to maintain data on its website and respond to public complaints. COMMENTS : In March 2012, Governor Brown issued an executive order (EO) directing state government to help accelerate the market for zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) in California. The EO also established the goal of placing 1.5 million ZEVs on California's roadways by 2025. Also, in March 2012, the California Public Utilities Commission announced a $120 million dollar settlement with NRG Energy Inc. to fund the construction of a statewide network of charging stations for ZEVs that includes at least 200 public fast-charging stations and another 10,000 plug-in units at 1,000 locations across the state. In February 2013, the Governor's Office released the ZEV Action Plan, which identified strategies and actions to meet the benchmarks in the EO. The ZEV Action Plan specifically addressed improvements to facilitate the purchase and use of ZEVs by, among other things, improving access to EV charging stations, placing charging stations in a wide variety of locations, and establishing EV charging station interoperability standards. EV owners need to have the confidence that they will be able to locate EV charging stations and charge their vehicles using consistent and reliable payment methods. The author points out, however, that EV owners often do not have broad access to EV charging stations because many privately-owned charging stations require a subscription or membership for use. The author notes that some privately-owned EV charging stations allow non-members to use the facility but only offer payment through the subscription service, essentially barring non-members. It is the author's contention that these practices hinder rather than help encourage EV adoption and use because if an EV owner cannot charge their vehicle, the fear that they will become stranded will cause them to use their EV less and also discourage widespread adoption of EV technology. SB 454 Page 4 To address these concerns, the author has introduced this bill which would improve accessibility to EV charging stations. Specifically, the bill would prohibit EV charging stations from requiring a subscription or membership as a condition of use and would further require that EV charging stations allow for payment using credit cards or other mobile technology. Additionally, this bill would require that EV charging stations provide geographic and fee information to NREL, a federally-affiliated organization that collects and distributes information free of charge, so that the information on EV charging station location and fees can be more easily disseminated to EV owners via websites of mobile phone applications. To further improve consumer disclosure, this bill also requires that EV charging stations be labeled in accordance with federal requirements and encourages that appropriate directional signage be placed in parking areas or other facilities where EV stations are located. The bill also authorizes CARB to adopt interoperability standards currently being developed by an industry-led effort and makes it possible for CARB adopt these standards while at the same time providing CARB with the authority to develop interoperability standards independently in the unlikely event that the industry-led effort is unsuccessful. To ensure that consumer grievances are recorded and responded to with regard to EV charging station access and operation, the bill also requires that CARB establish a hotline to gather consumer complaints. The bill requires CARB to summarize complaints annually and make the summary available to the public via their website. The sponsor of this bill, Plug In America, has indicated that they intend to review the summary of complaints compiled by CARB and address concerns, where possible, to improve the EV charging system access toward the overall goal of encouraging greater widespread adoption and use of EV technology. Previous legislation : SB 880 (Corbett), Chapter 6, Statutes of 2012, made changes to the rules on installation of EV charging stations in common interest developments. SB 209 (Corbett), Chapter 121, Statutes of 2012, provided that the prohibition on the installation or use of EV charging stations in any of the governing documents of a common interest SB 454 Page 5 development is void and unenforceable. AB 2502 (Blumenfield), Chapter 675 Statutes of 2012, revised the automobile conditional sales contract law to allow EV charging stations to be sold with, and financed as part of, an automobile purchase, with a required disclosure regarding charges. SB 1310 (Kehoe), Chapter 649, Statutes of 2010, expanded the voluntary contractual assessment to finance EV charging infrastructure affixed on real property and expanded the Property Assessed Clean Energy Reserve Program to assist local jurisdictions in financing the installation of EV charging infrastructure. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support Plug In America (sponsor) American Planning Association, California Chapter ChargePoint ECOtality Greenlots NRG Energy, Inc. Sierra Club California University of California Los Angeles Luskin Center for Innovation Opposition None on file. Analysis Prepared by : Victoria Alvarez / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093