EV Charging Is Here to Stay

Energy efficiency regulations may not be changing quite as fast as housing laws, but California has made notable changes over the last several years aimed at reaching its ever more ambitious carbon emissions reduction goals, including achieving carbon neutrality by 2045 and reducing statewide GHG emissions by 85 percent compared to 1990 levels. Transportation and building usage account for the majority of California’s GHG emissions. Accordingly, California has set goals to put at least five million zero-emission vehicles on California roads by 2030 and have 100 percent zero-emission vehicles for new cars and trucks by 2035, and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles by 2045. California is also assessing how to reduce GHG emissions from building usage by at least 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

In an effort to reach these goals, California is increasingly adopting new laws with the goal of improving energy efficiency in buildings and increasing the number of Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations. Some of these laws are intended to remove barriers to EV projects by streamlining permitting and removing burdensome local parking replacement requirements, while others may impose costly additional requirements on development projects. This article touches on some of the key changes that we expect to come into play more as the state’s GHG reduction deadlines loom.

ENTITLEMENT STREAMLINING FOR EV CHARGING STATIONS

AB 1236 (2015) provides streamlined permit approval for EV charging stations. The law requires administrative, by-right (i.e., no CEQA, no planning approvals) by the local agency, regardless the size of the station, so long as it complies with the California Electrical Code and meets all health and safety requirements. Local agencies may deny an application for an EV station only if they find in writing, based on substantial evidence, that the station would cause a specific, adverse impact upon the public health or safety that cannot be mitigated or avoided. AB 1236 is currently set to expire January 1, 2030. AB 970 (2021), a companion to AB 1236, sets very short, mandatory timelines for the local agency to determine whether the EV charging station application per AB 1236 is complete and to approve or deny the application.

No Parking Replacement Requirements for EV Projects

AB 1100 requires that local agencies consider an EV parking space as at least one standard parking space for purpose of satisfying applicable minimum parking requirements. AB 970 similarly provides that local jurisdictions cannot require applicants to replace existing parking spaces which are reduced or eliminated to accommodate an EV charging station proposed per AB 1236.

2022 CALGREEN

The California Green Building Standards Code, Cal. Code Regs., Title 24, Part 11, (CALGreen), the statewide mandatory construction code, requires new residential and commercial buildings to comply with a variety of energy efficient design measures intended to facilitate building decarbonization. The most recent CALGreen update went into effect on January 1, 2023. Regarding EVs, CALGreen distinguishes between “EV Ready” (a space equipped with low power Level 2 EV charging receptacles), “EV Capable” (a space which can support future installation of Level 2 EV supply equipment (EVSE)), and “EV Charging Station” (EVCS) (a space fully equipped with EVSE). In general, CALGreen requires for multifamily projects, hotels, and motels that 25% of all parking spaces are EV Ready and 10% are EV Capable. Such projects with more than 20 dwelling units or hotel rooms also must equip 5% of all spaces with EVCS. Nonresidential projects must make a certain percentage of all spaces EV Capable and EVCS; the number of each increases as the number of total project parking spaces increases. The percentages work out on average to approximately 20% EV Capable and 5% EVCS.

Developers should take note that local jurisdictions can, by ordinance, adopt requirements different than those in the statewide CALGreen. It is therefore important to check your local building code.

For instance, the City of Los Angeles requires for multifamily, hotel, and motel projects that 25% of total spaces (but in no case less than one per unit) be EV Ready and an additional 5% be EV Capable. If the project has 20 or more units, an additional 10% of all spaces must be EVCS (Level 2). For nonresidential projects, 20% of all spaces, regardless of project size, must be EVCS (at least one Level 2 EVSE), and an additional 10% of all spaces must be EV Capable.

The City of Encinitas requires that at least 15% of all spaces provided for new multifamily projects, and 8% of all spaces for new hotels, motels, and nonresidential projects, including significant alteration/additions, be equipped with EVCS (Level 2).

To complicate things further, CALGreen also includes “Voluntary” residential and nonresidential standards known as Tier 1 and Tier 2. The standards in these appendices are stricter energy efficiency measures than the mandatory CALGreen provisions, including for EV. These additional standards become mandatory for a project if the local agency adopts them by ordinance. We are finding that more jurisdictions are now starting to do this, and therefore again, it is important to check your local building code.

Santa Rosa and Larkspur, for instance, impose most Tier 1 requirements on all new residential and nonresidential development. This means that, in these jurisdictions, multifamily projects and hotels must provide 35% of all spaces as EV Ready. If the project has more than 20 units, an additional 10% of all spaces must be EVCS. The number of EV Capable and EVCS for nonresidential projects depends on the project’s total parking spaces, but the average is generally about 30% EV Capable and 10% EVCS. Note that Tier 1 and Tier 2 contain much more than just expanded EV requirements. Tier 2 requirements are even higher. While we have yet to encounter a jurisdiction that has adopted the Tier 2 requirements in whole-cloth, Palo Alto has adopted modified Tier 2 rules for new nonresidential construction (and most additions) and new low-rise residential construction.

The takeaway: existing and future energy efficiency and EV regulations are going to be increasingly relevant for development projects as the state approaches its impending and every more ambitious GHG emissions deadlines. It is therefore important to be tracking their changes and be aware of how local agencies are implementing them.