It’s about creating a landscape that’s supportive.Īnother example that’s great: In North Carolina, Duke Energy has what they call a Make Ready Credit Program. In states that do, we’re seeing higher adoption rates. Instead, it’s very piecemeal and up to local municipalities to choose to do that. In the Southeast, there is no statewide policy for EV-ready code. New construction is built to be able to accept or to receive a charging station. For example, in California, there is EV-ready building code. We could certainly be working to improve the entire landscape and create an ecosystem that would help to increase the number of electric vehicles throughout the Southeast. But there are other ways in which we are lagging. We have some policies in place that are helpful and constructive, like the right to sell and service in Florida. The report says the “southeast policy landscape is not supportive of electric vehicle market growth.” Could you explain? It becomes this like self fulfilling prophecy. Once you have a goal then you can have supporting policy to reach the goal. That would be, I think, very helpful to increasing adoption across the state. That could happen via an executive order from the governor’s office or legislative action. Usually the reason you have a plan is because you have a goal that you’re working toward. But what Florida doesn’t have is adoption goals at the state level. The Florida Department of Transportation did a fantastic job writing our EV Infrastructure Master Plan. Looking at a whole new rate design for electric transportation that would help site hosts, like a gas station, is really important. So site hosts are reluctant to put charging infrastructure in if they know that their bill is going to have these astronomical fees attached in the form of the demand charge. And that fee is often significantly higher than the cost of the electricity. If you buy a whole lot of electricity, or if a bunch of cars are plugged in all at the same time, you get this thing called a demand charge. Think about when you go to Costco, usually it’s cheaper to buy in bulk. One example adopted by other states is “time of use rates.” So, for example, it’s cheaper to charge in the evening to help consumers lower the cost of electricity usage. What action could Florida be taking to encourage the transition to electric? This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Larsen chatted with the Tampa Bay Times about the state of the electric vehicle market, and work the public and private sectors must do to increase adaptation. She also serves on the board of Drive Electric Florida and chairs the Tarpon Springs Sustainability Advisory Committee. The total number of electric vehicles in Florida increased 56% from July 2021 to July 2022, the report found.ĭory Larsen is the organization’s electric transportation program manager. Last week, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, a regional nonprofit and leading voice for the equitable and safe transition to cleaner energy, published their annual Transportation Electrification in the Southeast report in partnership with Atlas Public Policy. But here in the Sunshine State, where cars are king, market momentum is accelerating. There are no state rebates for electric vehicle purchases in Florida. President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act includes an extension of a tax credit for electric vehicles that is worth up to $7,500 per qualifying car or truck.
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