Plug-In Sites

There is a hearing today on bill HB 839 to prohibit “ICEing” of EV charging stations in the state of Maryland. I will be appearing before the House Environment and Transportation Committee to testify in person along with several other EV drivers and supporters. Here is the written testimony that I have provided to the members of the Committee.

Bill: HB 839 (Plug-In Electric Drive Vehicles – Reserved Parking Spaces)
Committee: Environment and Transportation
Hearing Date: March 3, 2016
Position: SUPPORT WITH AMENDMENTS

Chairman Barve and Members of the Committee,

I am an electric car driver from Columbia, Maryland. I have worked closely with Councilmember Hans Riemer of Montgomery County and Jen Terrasa of Howard County on legislation to discourage non-electric cars from parking at charging stations.

I support the general goal of HB 839, but have reservations about three specific details and would like to see the following amendments.

AMENDMENT NO. 1
On page 2, in lines 23 and 24, strike “THAT IS CONNECTED TO CHARGING EQUIPMENT FOR CHARGING PURPOSES”

AMENDMENT NO. 2
On page 3, strike in their entirety lines 3 and 4, “STATE THAT A MOTOR VEHICLE
PARKED IN VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION MAY BE TICKETED,TOWED, OR REMOVED AT THE OWNER’S EXPENSE.” and substitute “SHALL BE IN CONFORMANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS FOR UNIFORM TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES UNDER TRANSPORTATION ARTICLE, §25-104, ANNOTATED CODE OF MARYLAND.”

AMENDMENT NO. 3
On page 3, strike in their entirety lines 5 and 6 “(D) A PLUG–IN ELECTRIC DRIVE
VEHICLE CHARGING SPACE SHALL BE INDICATED BY GREEN PAVEMENT MARKINGS.”

The concern with the requirement that the vehicle be “connected to charging equipment for charging purposes” is that it could leave an innocent EV driver vulnerable to having a car towed or ticketed if someone innocently or maliciously unplugs them. It also prevents the practice of sharing one charging station among several adjacent spaces at long-term parking facilities such as at airports.

An essential element of HB 839 is the definition of a “plug-in electric drive vehicle charging space.” I believe that if the signage and pavement marking requirements are unusually difficult to procure or burdensome to apply, then the required signs or marking are much less likely to be deployed and the bill will not have the desired outcome.

Typically, notice that violators of parking regulations may be towed is placed on large signs at the entrance of parking lots in accordance with state and local trespass tow laws. In my opinion, there is no need to repeat the warning on the regulatory sign designating each charging space.

I propose adopting the sign requirements used in the Howard and Montgomery County laws. Those laws say that the signs must conform to State and Federal standards for parking control signs. The standards that would apply are from the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). Regulatory signs that are MUTCD compliant are easy to purchase off-the-shelf and have proven to be very effective.

Following are the relevant sections of the Howard and Montgomery County Codes:

Howard Co, MD: A sign that designates a space under this subsection must be at least 12 inches by 18 inches and meet any applicable State or Federal standards for parking control signs.

Montgomery Co, MD: is marked for the use of plug-in vehicles with an official sign that conforms to regulations adopted pursuant to Section 31-23 – (conform in design, color, size and placement to the standards established in the most recent edition of the “Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways.”)

With respect to green pavement markings to designate charging spaces, this requirement is currently unique to Washington State. No other states or local jurisdictions that I am aware of require this.

I believe that the requirement to indicate a charging space by green pavement markings in HB 839 is imprecise and subject to misinterpretation by parking facility managers and law enforcement. Green pavement markings could be a voluntary option or regulated at the local level. For example, the blue rectangles with the International Symbol of Access often found on the pavement at ADA parking spaces are not required by Federal or Maryland law. If ADA parking pavement marking is mandated, it is done so at the local level in Maryland.

Thank you for your efforts to support electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Maryland.

I respectfully request that the Committee grant HB 839 a favorable report only with the stated amendments.

@Lanny

If you are buying a plug-in electric vehicle in Maryland soon, you may have to wait until July to have your excise tax credit refund processed. According to the Maryland MVA, the funds for fiscal year 2016 are nearly depleted. The MVA says that refunds will be processed beginning in July as long as the application is received.

The following bulletin is dated February 19, 2016

Please be advised, effective immediately (February 19, 2016) the allotted funds for Plug-In electric vehicles for fiscal year 2016 are depleted. We are currently processing a number of applications received that will utilize the remaining amount of funding. Once all funds are exhausted, there will be no additional refunds issued for fiscal year 2016. Please alert your customers to this information prior to their purchase of an electric vehicle.

MVA will continue to accept applications for the excise tax credit until the end of fiscal year, even after the depletion of the fund. Plug-In electric vehicle refunds will resume in July 2016, for vehicles that meet the requirements.

@PlugInSites

Video of the public hearing on Howard County Council Bill 7-2016 on Feb. 16, 2016.

Lanny Hartmann, Scott Wilson and Vladi Ivanov provided testimony in person. Mark Czajka, Director of MD Volt, Inc. provided written testimony in support of the bill.

Howard County CB7-2016 will add the following two sentences to the existing anti-ICEing law:
(1) THE POLICE DEPARTMENT MAY ENFORCE THIS SECTION ON PUBLIC PROPERTY OR PRIVATE PROPERTY.
(2) THE POLICE DEPARTMENT MAY IMPOUND A VEHICLE THAT IS PARKED IN VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION.

@PlugInSites

Environment and Transportation Committee

Maryland House Bill, HB-839 [PDF link] concerning Reserved Parking Spaces for Plug–In Electric Vehicles, is scheduled for a hearing in Annapolis on March 3rd, 2016. The hearing will be before the House Environment and Transportation Committee at 1:00 PM.

HB-839 is sponsored by Delegate Clarence Lam who represents District 12 with parts of Howard and Baltimore Counties. I have spoken with his staff a number of times as this bill was being drafted. The latest update is that they intend to submit an amendment to remove the “connected to charging equipment” language from the bill.

How to Testify

If you wish to testify, you must sign in before the hearing begins. You may also submit written testimony. Be sure to follow the Witness Guidelines for the Environment and Transportation Committee for all written and oral testimony.

Stay tuned to @PlugInSites for details as they develop.

Maryland State Delegate Clarence Lam has introduced a bill to prohibit parking at a designated EV charging station unless the vehicle is plugged in. The bill, HB-839 [PDF link] concerning Reserved Parking Spaces for Plug–In Electric Vehicles, is the fourth attempt at “anti-ICEing” legislation in the Maryland General Assembly.

Here are highlights of the bill.

Cars Must be Plugged In
UPDATE: The requirement to be connected is subject to be removed.

Unless the vehicle is a plug–in electric drive vehicle that is connected to charging equipment for charging purposes, a person may not stop, stand, or park the vehicle in a designated plug–in electric drive vehicle charging space.

Sign and Green Pavement Markings Specified

A sign designating a plug–in electric drive vehicle charging space shall:
(1) Be at least 18 inches high and 12 inches wide;
(2) Be clearly visible to the driver of a motor vehicle
entering the plug–in electric drive vehicle charging space; and
(3) State that a motor vehicle parked in violation of this section may be ticketed, towed, or removed at the owner’s expense.
(d) A plug–in electric drive vehicle charging space shall be indicated by green pavement markings.

Towing Provision Included

(1) A privately owned parking facility may have a vehicle that is stopped, standing, or parked in violation of this section towed or removed in accordance with subtitle 10a of this title.
(2) A parking facility owned by a local jurisdiction may have a vehicle that is stopped, standing, or parked in violation of this section ticketed, towed, or removed if authorized by local law.

$100 Fine for ICEing

A person who violates § 21–1003.2 of this article (“unauthorized parking in a plug–in electric drive vehicle charging space”) is subject to a civil penalty of $100.

Hearing Date is March 3, 2016

Stay tuned to @PlugInSites, for details of when the hearing will be held.

The statewide “anti-ICEing” law being proposed in Maryland will have nine co-sponsors when it is introduced to the House Environment and Transportation Committee.

Plug In Sites had learned that primary sponsor, Delegate Clarence Lam who represents parts of Howard & Baltimore Counties, has lined up nine co-sponsors including the Chairman of the Environment and Transportation Committee, Kumar Barve.

Members of Environment and Transportation Committee Among Co-Sponsors

In addition to Chairman Barve and Del. Lam, two other members, David Fraser-Hidalgo and Stephen Lafferty, of the 24 member Environment and Transportation Committee are co-sponsors of the bill. This is significant because the first step for the bill is to get out of the Committee and four of the members are presumably already supportive. This is in contrast to SB168, the “HOA charging bill” which had only one co-sponsor and no sponsors on the Judicial Proceedings Committee. That bill was quickly voted down by the Committee.

List of Co-Sponsors

Primary Sponsor: Clarence Lam, Co-Sponsors: Kumar Barve, Eric Ebersole, David Fraser-Hidalgo, Bill Frick, Carol Krimm, Stephen Lafferty, Eric Luedtke, Andrew Platt and Frank Turner.

More Details Soon

Stay tuned to @PlugInSites, we expect to report additional details including the text of the bill and a hearing date shortly.

Maryland Senate Bill (SB) 168, regarding installation and use of electric vehicle recharging equipment at HOAs, condos and rentals was given an Unfavorable Report by the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee in a vote on February 4, 2016. SB168 Recorded Vote

The following is a message concerning a proposed change to “anti-ICEing” legislation in Howard County Maryland that would make the prohibitions against parking a non plug-in car at a charging station enforceable on private property as well as county-owned property.

Enforcement of Designated Electric Vehicle plug-in Parking Spaces – CB7-2016

In 2014, I was proud to sponsor Council Bill 36-2014 which passed with the support of my colleague Council Chairperson Calvin Ball.  This bill ensured posted parking spaces with electric vehicle charging stations would be reserved only for plug-in vehicles.  As you know, encouraging individual residents to make choices that reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions is an important aspect of what the County can do, not only to reduce the carbon footprint of County Government operations, but also to help reduce the overall carbon footprint of our community.  We must seek to develop a robust network of charging stations throughout the County which will be essential to making electric vehicles a viable and convenient alternative.  Tantamount will be safeguarding those charging spaces for plug-in vehicles as they are critical to the growing acceptance and long-term success of electric vehicles.  

While Council Bill 36-2014 was an important step forward, varying legal interpretations of the Police Department’s authority to enforce EV parking spaces on private property became apparent.  Monday, Councilman Ball and I were pleased to introduce Council Bill 7-2016 which gives the Howard County Police Department the express authority to ticket non electric vehicles in designated EV parking spaces on both public and private property.  Council Bill 7-2016 provides another significant advancement toward a cleaner and greener future for Howard County.   

There will be an opportunity to provide public comment on this matter and other bills before the Council on February 16, 2016, at 7:00 p.m. in the Banneker Room of the George Howard Building.  If you would like to testify at the public hearing, you can sign-up in person at the hearing, or you register in advance online here. You may also submit written testimony, comments or questions to me directly at JTerrasa@HowardCountyMD.gov, and to Councilman Ball at CBBall@howardcountymd.gov.  if you would like to share your testimony with the entire Council, please email CouncilMail@HowardCountyMD.gov.

 As an advocate for electric vehicles, your input and support on this important legislation would be greatly appreciated. We look forward to hearing from you.

All the best,

Jen &  Calvin

Video of testimony before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on Feb. 2, 2016. Testimony on SB168 starts at 2:34 and runs for about an hour.

SB168 Analysis: Fiscal and Policy Note: PDF