Rules for e-vehicle charging proposed; public hearing Oct. 11

The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) filed a proposed rule aimed to regulate publicly available charging stations for electric vehicles. 

This action follows the passage of 2SSB 5192 in the 2021 legislative session. 

Officials scheduled a public hearing on the rule for Oct. 11, 10 a.m. 

Stakeholders, including owners and users (EV drivers) of charging stations, are encouraged to comment on the proposed rule.

The bill requires WSDA to develop rules regarding electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), where drivers of electric vehicles pay to charge up their vehicle’s batteries.

The rules would affect Level 2 charging stations, which take about eight hours to fully charge a vehicle, and direct current fast chargers (DCFC) that can fully charge a vehicle in 90 minutes or less. 

In most cases, drivers pay a fee for the charging service.

The proposed rule includes:

  •  Updating the chapter title to reflect that the sale of electric vehicle fuel is now regulated under this chapter.
  •  Establishing EVSE compliance dates and creating an exemption for EVSE installed before Jan. 1, 2024 that are clearly marked.
  • Requiring all electric vehicle service providers to make available multiple payment methods at all publicly available Level 2 or DCFC EVSE installed in Washington, and establishing minimum required payment methods.
  • Requiring electric vehicle service providers (EVSP) to provide means for conducting a charging session in at least one language other than English.
  • Establishing requirements for all EVSP to, at a minimum, meet and maintain nonproprietary interoperability standards for publicly available Level 2 and DCFC EVSE.