Policy Options

‘**’ indicates bipartisan support

Batteries

• California AB-2832 (enacted 2018): created an Advisory Group to advise the legislature on the recovery and recycling of vehicular lithium-ion batteries. The Advisory Group released its draft report with policy recommendations at the end of 2021. 
• Washington S.B.5144 (enacted 2023): requires each producer selling batteries in or into the state of Washington to participate in a state battery stewardship plan and appropriately fund a battery stewardship organization.

Charging Infrastructure and Parking

• **Colorado HB22-1218 (enacted 2022): required commercial buildings and multifamily residences to include electric vehicle charging for at least 10% of the parking spaces if the building is 25,000 square feet or more; etc.
• **Oregon H.B.2180 (enacted 2021): amends state building code to require that new construction of certain buildings include provisions for electrical service capacity for specified percentage of parking spaces.

Electric School Buses

• Maine L.D. 519 (enacted 2023): requires the Efficiency Maine Trust to design and operate a 2-year vehicle-to-grid pilot project to use electric school buses to store energy from the electric grid during times of low demand and low usage rates and discharge the stored energy to the grid during times of high demand and high usage rates.
• Virginia H.B. 2118 (enacted 2021): establishes the Electric Vehicle Grant Fund and Program for the purpose of awarding grants to public school divisions for replacing diesel school buses with electric school buses, implementing recharging infrastructure, and providing training to support the operation of electric school buses.

Electrifying State Fleets

• Hawaii S.B.1024 (enacted 2023): establishes a statewide goal to achieve zero emissions across all transportation modes (ground, air, and sea) within the state.
• Nevada A.B.262 (enacted 2023): Requires every employee and department of the State to give preference to automobiles that minimize: (1) emissions and (2) the total cost of the automobile over the service life of the automobile; sets a state policy goal to transition all publicly-owned vehicles to vehicles which emit zero tailpipe emissions by 2050.
• Virginia S.B. 575 (enacted 2022): beginning 2023, requires all agencies of the Commonwealth to utilize the total cost of ownership calculator prior to purchasing or leasing light-duty vehicles and to purchase electric vehicles unless the calculator clearly indicates that purchasing or leasing an internal combustion-engine vehicle has a lower cost of ownership.

Multi-Family Housing Charging

• Illinois S.B.0040 (enacted 2023): requires a new single-family residence or a small multifamily residence to have at least one electric vehicle capable parking space; requires electric vehicle parking spaces for affordable housing and for an existing multi-unit residential building subject to an association that undertakes renovation.
• Utah S.B.152 (enacted 2022): Prohibits a community association from prohibiting a unit owner from installing or using a charging system.

Incentives

• Colorado HB 23-1272 (enacted 2023): increases the Colorado EV tax credit from $2,000 to $5,000 for vehicles with a manufacturer-suggested retail price under $80,000; creates a state tax credit of $12,000 for medium and heavy-duty electric trucks. 
• Vermont H.433 (enacted 2021): creates a high fuel efficiency vehicle incentive program to provide point-of-sale vouchers through the State’s network of community action agencies and set income eligibility for the voucher at 80 percent of the State median income.

Rural Access

• Nebraska L.B.1257 (introduced 2022): appropriates available federal funds to the Nebraska Department of Transportation for the purpose of establishing an electric vehicle charging station grant program with a focus on rural areas and areas unserved or underserved by charging stations.
• Virginia H.B. 2282 (enacted 2021): directed the State Corporation Commission to report on policy proposals to accelerate transportation electrification specifically in low-income, minority, and rural communities.
• The U.S. Department of Transportation created “Charging Forward: A Toolkit for Planning and Funding Rural Electric Mobility Infrastructure.” and the Electrification Coalition created a report entitled, “Electric Vehicles in Rural Communities.”