On June 9, the Federal Highway Administration (“FHWA”) within the U.S. Department of Transportation (“DOT”) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) to establish a set of minimum standards and requirements for electric vehicle (“EV”) charging infrastructure projects funded with federal dollars from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (“BIL”). Following the NPRM comment period, which ends 60 days following the publishing of the proposed rule in the Federal Register, a final rulemaking would be a significant step toward standardizing and modernizing what has, to date, been a quilted patchwork of EV charging networks and frustrating customer experiences. The NPRM states its aim is to establish clear rules of the road to create a “convenient, affordable, reliable, and equitable network of chargers” and lower barriers of entry for consumers thinking about going electric for their next vehicle.
Rulemaking is Latest Step Ahead of Billions in EV Funding
The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (“NEVI”) Program is a key EV component of the BIL, providing $5 billion in formula funding to states to build out EV charging infrastructure along highway corridors. The BIL provides another $2.5 billion in competitive grants to support charging infrastructure and EV access in underserved and overburdened communities. The Biden Administration aims to deploy such funding (collectively, the “Programs”) to support 500,000 EV chargers in the U.S. by 2030. The BIL required DOT to establish a set of minimum EV standards and requirements for the use of such Programs’ funds within 180 days of the legislation’s enactment. Comments on the proposed rules are due within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register.
The NPRM begins with a detailed recap of the “disparities” in consumer options due to a lack of national standards for EV charging and sets forth various technical, consumer, and reporting requirements across six primary categories:
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Installation, operation, and maintenance by qualified technicians of EV infrastructure (§ 680.106)
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Interoperability of EV charging infrastructure (§ 680.108)
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Traffic control devices and on-premise signs acquired, installed, or operated (§ 680.110)
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Data requested related to a project funded under the NEVI Formula Program, including the format and schedule for the submission of such data. (§ 680.112)
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Network connectivity of EV charging infrastructure (§ 680.114)
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Information on publicly available EV charging infrastructure locations, pricing, real-time availability, and accessibility though mapping applications. (§ 680.116)
Installation and Operation
The NPRM would require each charging station under the NEVI Program to offer a minimum of four Direct Current Fast Charger (“DCFC”) ports capable of simultaneously charging four EVs. Each DCFC port must utilize a Combined Charging System (“CCS”) Type 1 connector and be capable of charging any CCS-compliant vehicle. Each DCFC port would be required to offer charging of at least 150 kilowatts (kW) simultaneously. A J1772 connector would be required for any AC Level 2 chargers. The 150-kW rate is still short of leading networks’ maximum charging capacity (in the range of 250 kW to 350 kW), but it would be a significant improvement if deployed on the national scale that the BIL envisions.
Charging stations would be required to be available for use by the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and on a year-round basis, with few exceptions. This would be a welcome standard for current EV drivers that can often be surprised on a road trip that a charging station that appears to be “public” is really in a hotel parking lot restricted to hotel guests, or is located in a parking garage that closes after normal daytime business hours.
In another important step, operators of charging stations could not require memberships for use. Stations would be prohibited…
Read More: DOT To Establish Minimum Standard for EV charging Infrastructure