Electric vehicles: parking requirements.

The Planning and Zoning Law, among other things, requires the legislative body of each county and city to adopt a general plan for the physical development of the county or city and authorizes the adoption and administration of zoning laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations by counties and cities. Existing law, the Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Open Access Act, prohibits the charging of a subscription fee on persons desiring to use an electric vehicle charging station, as defined, and prohibits a requirement for persons to obtain membership in any club, association, or organization as a condition of using the station, except as specified. Existing law requires a city, county, or city and county to approve an application for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations, as defined, through the issuance of specified permits, unless the city or county makes specified written findings based upon substantial evidence in the record that the proposed installation would have a specific, adverse impact upon the public health or safety, and there is no feasible method to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adverse impact. Under existing law, an "electric vehicle charging station" is one or more publicly available parking spaces served by electric vehicle service equipment, which is defined as an electric component assembly or cluster of component assemblies designed specifically to charge batteries within electric vehicles by permitting the transfer of electric energy to a battery or other storage device in an electric vehicle. Existing law authorizes a local authority, by ordinance or resolution, and a person in lawful possession of an offstreet parking facility to designate stalls or spaces in an offstreet parking facility owned or operated by that local authority or person for the exclusive purpose of charging and parking a vehicle that is connected for electric charging purposes. Existing law additionally authorizes a local authority, by ordinance or resolution, to designate stalls or spaces on a public street within its jurisdiction for the exclusive purpose of charging and parking a vehicle that is connected for electric charging purposes. This bill would require a parking space served by electric vehicle supply equipment, as defined, and a parking space designated as a future electric vehicle charging space, as defined, to be counted as at least one standard automobile parking space for the purpose of complying with any applicable minimum parking requirements established by a local jurisdiction. The bill would require an accessible parking space with an access aisle served by electric vehicle supply equipment and accessible parking space with an access aisle intended as a future electric vehicle charging space to be counted as at least 2 standard automobile parking spaces for the purpose of complying with any applicable minimum parking requirements established by a local jurisdiction. The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.