Electric vehicle charging stations: permit fees.

The residential electric vehicle charging station fee cap of $100 plus $15 per kilowatt for each kilowatt above 15kW was entirely removed from the bill.

The remaining fee cap ($500 + $5/kW between 51-250kW + $2/kW above 250kW) was narrowed to apply only to level 2 electric vehicle charging stations installed at new or existing multifamily housing developments, rather than broadly covering commercial and level 2 stations.

The commercial fee cap (base $500 plus per-kilowatt rates) now applies only to Level 2 EV charging stations at new or existing multifamily housing developments, rather than to all commercial EV charging stations. Large commercial DC fast chargers are no longer subject to the fee cap.

Fixed a spacing inconsistency: '250 kW' changed to '250kW' for consistency with the rest of the text.

Removed a blank subsection (d) and renumbered subsequent sections (SEC. 3 and SEC. 4) to correct a duplicate section numbering error from the prior version.

All provisions amending Section 66015 of the Government Code regarding solar energy system permit fees were deleted. The bill no longer touches residential or commercial solar permit fee caps, definitions, or related requirements.

A new Section 1 was added containing extensive legislative findings and declarations covering transportation greenhouse gas emissions, ZEV manufacturing jobs, Executive Order N-79-20, the projected need for over 1 million additional chargers by 2030, multifamily housing charging access, and prior solar permit affordability legislation.

A new effective date provision was added to Section 66015.5(d): the EV charging station fee caps become operative on July 1, 2027, but for every city, county, or charter city with a population of fewer than 200,000 residents, the provisions do not apply until January 1, 2028.

The bill's designation changed from 'no' to 'yes' for both fiscal committee review and state-mandated local program, indicating the Senate version triggers additional state oversight and potential reimbursement obligations under the Constitution.

Added new Chapter 7.7 (Section 66015.5) to the Government Code establishing permit fee caps for electric vehicle charging stations, expanding the bill from a narrow solar-only technical fix to cover both solar and EV charging station permitting.

Added a legislative finding that consistent EV charging station permitting fee standards are a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair, ensuring the fee caps apply to all cities including charter cities.

Residential EV charging station permit fees are capped at $100 plus $15 per kilowatt for each kilowatt above 15kW. Commercial EV charging station permit fees are capped at $500 plus $5 per kilowatt between 51kW and 250kW, plus $2 per kilowatt above 250kW.

Local agencies may exceed the fee caps only if they provide substantial evidence of reasonable cost through a written finding and an adopted resolution or ordinance, including a determination that streamlined permitting processes are in place, a cost calculation, and a description of how the higher fee results in faster approval.

The new EV charging station fee cap chapter (Section 66015.5) expires on January 1, 2036, two years later than the existing solar fee caps which expire January 1, 2034.

The bill now imposes a state-mandated local program (changed from 'no' to 'yes') and requires fiscal committee review (changed from 'no' to 'yes'), reflecting the new obligations placed on local agencies. No state reimbursement is required because local agencies can levy sufficient fees to cover costs.