Planning and zoning: electric vehicle charging stations: permit application: approval.

Existing law requires a city, county, or city and county to administratively approve an application to install an electric vehicle charging station through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit subject to a limited review by the building official of that city, county, or city and county. Existing law allows the building official to require the applicant to apply for a use permit if the official finds that the station could have a specific adverse impact upon the public health or safety and prohibits the city, county, or city and county from denying the application for a use permit to install an electric vehicle charging station unless it makes written findings 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. Existing law requires every city, county, and city and county to create an expedited, streamlined permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations and to adopt a checklist pursuant to which an application that satisfies the information requirements in that checklist shall be deemed complete and therefore eligible for expedited review. This bill would clarify that these provisions apply to all cities, including charter cities. This bill would require an application to install an electric vehicle charging station to be deemed complete if, either 5 business days or 10 business days after the application was submitted, depending on the number of electric vehicle charging stations proposed in the application, the city, county, or city and county has not deemed the application to be incomplete or issued a written correction notice detailing all deficiencies in the application, as specified. The bill would require an application to install an electric vehicle charging station to be deemed approved if 20 business days or 40 business days after the application was deemed complete, depending on the number of electric vehicle charging stations proposed in the application, (1) the city, county, or city and county has not approved the application, (2) the building official has not made a finding that the proposed installation could have an adverse impact upon the public health or safety or required the applicant to apply for a use permit, (3) the building official has not denied the permit, and (4) an appeal has not been made to the planning commission of the city, county, or city and county, as specified. The bill would provide that these requirements do not expand or restrict the role or responsibility of a local publicly owned electric utility in providing new electric service to an electric vehicle charging station in a manner consistent with safety, reliability, and engineering requirements. The bill would require a city, county, or city and county to reduce the number of required parking spaces to accommodate the electric vehicle charging station, as specified. This bill's provisions would become operative on January 1, 2022, but for every city, county, or city and county with a population of less than 200,000 residents, the bill's provisions would apply beginning on January 1, 2023. 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.