Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

S-4705.2
                           SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 6304
     State of Washington         68th Legislature          2024 Regular Session
     By Senate Transportation    (originally   sponsored   by   Senators   Liias,
     Nguyen, and Kuderer)
     READ FIRST TIME 02/05/24.
     AN ACT Relating to implementing certain recommendations of the
 transportation electrification strategy; amending RCW 43.31.970,
 47.01.520, 35.92.450, 54.16.430, 80.28.360, and 46.37.423; reenacting
 and amending RCW 43.84.092, 43.84.092, and 43.84.092; adding a new
 section to chapter 46.37 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 70A.350
 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.160 RCW; adding a new
 section to chapter 43.01 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 19 RCW;
 adding a new chapter to Title 70A RCW; creating a new section;
 prescribing penalties; providing effective dates; and providing
 expiration dates.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
                                PART I
   ELECTRIC VEHICLE SUPPLY EQUIPMENT INSTALLATION, INFORMATION, AND
                              RELIABILITY
     Sec. 101. RCW 43.31.970 and 2023 c 470 s 2046 are each amended
 to read as follows:
     The department of commerce must ((distribute)):
     (1) Coordinate with the interagency electric vehicle coordinating
 council, state and local agencies, climate and environmental justice
 organizations,    consumer   and    ratepayer   advocates,   industry
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 representatives,   labor  representatives,   consumer-owned  electric
 utilities, investor-owned electric utilities, and building owners and
 operators to implement this section;
     (2) Develop recommended legislative language, delivered to the
 legislature, on:
     (a) Maximum timelines for electric vehicle supply equipment
 project permitting and interconnection;
     (b) Necessary reporting requirements for electric utilities on
 transportation electrification efforts;
     (c) Requirements for consumer information on electric vehicle
 supply equipment;
     (d) Extending right-to-charge policies to tenants and homeowners
 outside of common interest communities;
     (e) Reliability standards for both publicly funded and publicly
 available electric vehicle supply equipment; and
     (f) Other policies to implement recommendations on improving
 electric vehicle supply equipment availability and use in the
 transportation electrification strategy under RCW 43.392.040;
     (3) Develop a comprehensive and publicly available inventory of
 all electric vehicle supply equipment in Washington by December 31,
 2025.
     (a) The department must develop reporting requirements for
 electric vehicle supply equipment providers, owners, and operators or
 any other entities necessary to develop the inventory in this
 subsection.
     (b) For publicly available or shared use electric vehicle supply
 equipment, the department must require entities to report reliability
 data as determined by the department.
     (c) The department must adopt rules to determine necessary
 information and a reporting process for collecting data for the
 inventory;
     (4) Distribute to local governments model ordinances, model
 development regulations, and guidance for local governments for
 siting and installing electric vehicle infrastructure((, and in
 particular battery charging stations, and appropriate handling,
 recycling, and storage of electric vehicle batteries and equipment,
 when available)) by December 31, 2025, and every five years
 thereafter. The model ordinances, model development regulations, and
 guidance must be developed by a federal or state agency, or
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  nationally recognized organizations with specific expertise in land-
  use regulations or electric vehicle infrastructure.
     Sec. 102. RCW 47.01.520 and 2021 c 300 s 2 are each amended to
 read as follows:
     (1) The department, through the department's public-private
 partnership office and in consultation with the department of
 ecology, the department of commerce, and the office of equity, must
 develop and maintain a publicly available mapping and forecasting
 tool that provides locations and essential information of charging
 and refueling infrastructure to support forecasted levels of electric
 vehicle adoption, travel, and usage across Washington state.
     (2)(a) The publicly available mapping and forecasting tool must
 be designed to enable coordinated, effective, efficient, and timely
 deployment of charging and refueling infrastructure necessary to
 support statewide and local transportation electrification efforts
 that result in emissions reductions consistent with RCW 70A.45.020.
     (b) The tool must:
     (i) Initially prioritize on-road transportation;
     (ii) ((To the greatest extent possible, maintain)) Incorporate
 the latest data on public and shared use charging from the inventory
 of electric vehicle supply equipment as specified in RCW 43.31.970;
     (iii) ((Model charging and)) Use electric vehicle supply
 equipment    estimates    as    identified    in    the   transportation
 electrification strategy under RCW 43.392.040 and model hydrogen
 refueling infrastructure that may be used by owners and operators of
 light, medium, and heavy duty vehicles; and
     (iv) Incorporate the department's traffic data for passenger and
 freight vehicles.
     (c) The tool must, if feasible:
     (i) Provide the data necessary to support programs by state
 agencies   that   directly   or    indirectly    support  transportation
 electrification efforts;
     (ii)   Evolve   over   time   to    support   future  transportation
 electrification programs;
     (iii) Provide data at a scale that supports electric utility
 planning for the impacts of transportation electrification both
 systemwide and on specific components of the distribution system; and
     (iv) ((Forecast)) Use statewide zero emissions vehicle ((use that
 would   achieve   the   emissions    reductions   consistent  with   RCW
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 70A.45.020))   estimates   from   the  transportation electrification
 strategy   under   RCW   43.392.040.  The  department  may  reference
 ((existing)) zero emissions vehicle use forecasts that update the
 transportation electrification strategy estimates, such as that
 established in the state energy strategy.
     (3) The department, in consultation with the department of
 commerce, the department of ecology, and the office of equity, may
 elect to include other transportation charging and refueling
 infrastructure, such as maritime, public transportation, and aviation
 in the mapping and forecasting tool.
     (4) The tool must include, to the extent feasible, the following
 elements:
     (a) The amount, type, location, and year of installation for
 electric vehicle supply equipment that is expected to be necessary to
 support forecasted electric vehicle penetration and usage within the
 state;
     (b) Electric vehicle adoption, usage, technological profiles, and
 any other characteristics necessary to model future electric vehicle
 penetration levels and use cases that impact electric vehicle supply
 equipment needs within the state;
     (c) The estimated energy and capacity demand based on inputs from
 (b) of this subsection;
     (d) Boundaries of political subdivisions including, but not
 limited to:
     (i) Retail electricity suppliers;
     (ii) Public transportation agency boundaries;
     (iii) Municipalities;
     (iv) Counties; and
     (v) Federally recognized tribal governments;
     (e) Existing and known publicly or privately owned level 2,
 direct current fast charge, and refueling infrastructure. The
 department must identify gas stations, convenience stores, and other
 small retailers that are colocated with existing and known electric
 vehicle charging infrastructure identified under this subsection;
     (f) A public interface designed to provide any user the ability
 to determine the forecasted charging and refueling infrastructure
 needs within a provided geographic boundary, including those listed
 under (d) of this subsection; and
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     (g) The ability for all data tracked within the tool to be
 downloadable or usable within a separate mapping and forecasting
 tool.
     (5) The tool must, if feasible, integrate scenarios including:
     (a) Varying levels of public transportation utilization;
     (b) Varying levels of active transportation usage, such as biking
 or walking;
     (c) Vehicle miles traveled amounts above and below the baseline;
     (d) Adoption of autonomous and shared mobility services; and
     (e) Forecasts capturing each utility service area's relative
 level of zero emissions vehicle use that would achieve each utility
 service area's relative emissions reductions consistent with ((RCW
 70A.45.020))   estimates  from   the  transportation   electrification
 strategy under RCW 43.392.040.
     (6) To support highly impacted communities and vulnerable
 populations disproportionately burdened by transportation-related
 emissions and to ensure economic and mobility benefits flow to
 communities that have historically received less investment in
 infrastructure, the mapping and forecasting tool must integrate
 population, health, environmental, and socioeconomic data on a census
 tract basis. The department may use existing data used by other state
 or federal agencies. The department must consult with the department
 of health, the office of equity, the department of ecology, and other
 agencies as necessary in order to ensure the tool properly integrates
 cumulative impact analyses best practices and to ensure that the tool
 is   developed    in   coordination    with    other   state   government
 administrative    efforts  to    identify   disproportionately   impacted
 communities.
     (7) The mapping and forecasting tool must, to the extent
 appropriate, integrate related analyses, such as the department of
 commerce's    state   energy    strategy,    the   joint   transportation
 committee's public fleet electrification study, the west coast
 collaborative's alternative fuel infrastructure corridor coalition
 report,   and   other   related   electric    vehicle  supply   equipment
 assessments as deemed appropriate. To the extent that the mapping and
 forecasting tool is used by the department as the basis for the
 identification of recommended future electric vehicle charging sites,
 the department must consider recommending sites that are colocated
 with small retailers, including gas stations and convenience stores,
 and other amenities.
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     (8) Where appropriate and feasible, the mapping and forecasting
 tool must incorporate infrastructure located at or near the border in
 neighboring state and provincial jurisdictions.
     (9) In designing the mapping and forecasting tool, the department
 must coordinate with the department of commerce, the department of
 ecology, the utilities and transportation commission, and other state
 agencies as needed in order to ensure the mapping and forecasting
 tool is able to successfully facilitate other state agency programs
 that involve deployment of electric vehicle supply equipment.
     (10) The department must conduct a stakeholder process in
 developing the mapping and forecasting tool to ensure the tool
 supports the needs of communities, public agencies, and relevant
 private   organizations.   The  stakeholder   process   must  involve
 stakeholders((,)) including, but not limited to, electric utilities,
 early in the development of the tool.
     (11) The department may contract with the department of commerce
 or consultants, or both, to develop and implement all or portions of
 the mapping and forecasting tool. The department may rely on or, to
 the extent necessary, contract for privately maintained data
 sufficient to develop the elements specified in subsection (4) of
 this section.
     (12) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this
 section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (a)   "Charging   infrastructure"   means  a    unit   of  fueling
 infrastructure that supplies electric energy for the recharging of
 battery electric vehicles.
     (b) "Direct current fast charger" means infrastructure that
 supplies electricity to battery electric vehicles at capacities no
 less than 50 kilowatts, typically using 208/408 volt three-phase
 direct current electricity.
     (c) "Electric vehicle" means any craft, vessel, automobile,
 public transportation vehicle, or equipment that transports people or
 goods and operates, either partially or exclusively, on electrical
 energy from an off-board source that is stored onboard for motive
 purpose.
     (d)   "Electric   vehicle   supply   equipment"    means  charging
 infrastructure and hydrogen refueling infrastructure.
     (e) "Level 2 charger" means infrastructure that supplies
 electricity to battery electric vehicles at 240 volts and equal to or
 less than 80 amps.
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     (f)   "Refueling  infrastructure" means  a   unit  of  fueling
 infrastructure that supplies hydrogen for the resupply of hydrogen
 fuel cell electric vehicles.
                                PART II
      ELECTRIC UTILITY TRANSPORTATION ELECTRIFICATION INVESTMENTS
     Sec. 201. RCW 35.92.450 and 2019 c 109 s 2 are each amended to
 read as follows:
     (1) The governing authority of an electric utility formed under
 this chapter may adopt an electrification of transportation plan
 that((, at a minimum, establishes a finding that)) provides utility
 outreach and investment in the electrification of transportation
 infrastructure ((does not increase net costs to ratepayers in excess
 of one-quarter of one percent)).
     (2) In making investments under subsection (1) of this section,
 the governing authority must:
     (a) Prioritize strategies for electric utilities to implement
 including, but not limited to:
     (i) Residential and fleet charging;
     (ii) Demand management, including managed charging; and
     (iii) Upgrades to, or expansions of, utility owned and operated
 grid infrastructure for the purposes of delivering power to electric
 vehicle supply equipment.
     (b)   Meet   or   exceed   the   same  equity-related   investment
 requirements in RCW 70A.535.080 as implemented by the department of
 ecology.
     (3) In adopting an electrification of transportation plan under
 subsection (1) of this section, the governing authority may consider
 some or all of the following: (a) The applicability of multiple
 options for electrification of transportation across all customer
 classes; (b) the impact of electrification on the utility's load, and
 whether demand response or other load management opportunities,
 including direct load control and dynamic pricing, are operationally
 appropriate;   (c)   system   reliability  and   distribution   system
 efficiencies;    (d)   interoperability   concerns,   including    the
 interoperability of hardware and software systems in electrification
 of transportation proposals; and (e) overall customer experience.
     (((3))) (4) An electric utility formed under this chapter may,
 upon making a determination in accordance with subsection (1) of this
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  section,   offer  incentive   programs  in  the   electrification  of
  transportation for its customers, including the promotion of electric
  vehicle adoption and advertising programs to promote the utility's
  services, incentives, or rebates.
     Sec. 202. RCW 54.16.430 and 2019 c 109 s 3 are each amended to
 read as follows:
     (1) The commission of a public utility district may adopt an
 electrification of transportation plan that((, at a minimum,
 establishes a finding that)) provides utility outreach and investment
 in the electrification of transportation infrastructure ((does not
 increase net costs to ratepayers in excess of one-quarter of one
 percent)).
     (2) In making investments under subsection (1) of this section, a
 public utility district must:
     (a) Prioritize strategies for electric utilities to implement
 including, but not limited to:
     (i) Residential and fleet charging;
     (ii) Demand management, including managed charging; and
     (iii) Upgrades to, or expansions of, utility owned and operated
 grid infrastructure for the purposes of delivering power to electric
 vehicle supply equipment.
     (b)   Meet   or   exceed   the   same   equity-related   investment
 requirements in RCW 70A.535.080 as implemented by the department of
 ecology.
     (3) In adopting an electrification o