My Nissan Leaf Forum

Uh, oh. Looks like we got a problem here (caused, I might add, by GM sticking their nose in....again) - Assembly Bill 475 is going to change the existing CA law requiring ZEVs to show the State EV parking decal to avoid cite or tow, to eliminating the decal entirely and mandating that an EV or PHEV be actually connected to the EVSE, thus eliminating the idea of a shared charging infrastructure.

THANKS FOR NOTHING, AGAIN, GM!

I don't know if there are any options left as of now....this all happened as of last week. But if there is a chance of getting this overturned, I'll find out how and report back.

http://evchels.wordpress.com/2011/08/19/gmcharging/

http://images.pluginamerica.org/AB_475_ ... -17-11.pdf

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bil ... n_v95.html

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postq ... hor=butler

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postq ... hor=butler

Edit:

It looks like it passed the Senate with amendments. So, if I understand my legislative processes correctly, it now has to go back to the Assembly for resolution:

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bil ... floor.html

I don't know if that means there is a chance for intervening by contacting our local Assembly member or not?

Thanks for posting all that.

I hope as a group we find a way out of this mess somehow.

If there were charging stations in Sacramento, somebody nearby could go by
just before the "meter-reader" and helpfully unplug all the charging cords.

A few months of that, and maybe our legislators would write a better law.

In the mean time, take a time-and-dated picture of your connection
each time you plug in?

This is a perfect example of various legal processes that
can be used to stop/stall/kill the EV Revolution.

Requiring the ZEV sticker would mean that PHEVs could not use public charging at all.

I dont understand what the complaint is.. they are getting rid of the decal and requiring you to be plugged in?.. whats the issue?

Ironically, I'm told that's where most of the few sites (of the total in CA) that use this law are... / Almost none in SoCal do.



Unfortunately, that doesn't prove you were still plugged in at the moment you received the ticket/tow. And if not, why not.

There are several: http://evchels.wordpress.com/2011/08/19/gmcharging/

And not allowing PHEVs to plug in at all isn't the right answer either. Best would be to gut the whole thing, which would solve everyone's problems. If it's determined that a state law is still needed, we can start over and do one right.

Second best is to go back to the original version of this bill, which kept the stickers and just expanded the definition of eligible vehicles.

According to the law as worded, a car, even an ICE with no battery, but has a socket, could be legally in the space if plugged in. Is that correct?
And if the person who unplugs my car happens to be the same one who is fulfilling his quota of citations, then I guess my little Jazz video camera had better be recording every instant of my parking duration.
Gregg

I've just asked for GM's position. Our interpretation was that the definitions provided in the bill summary clarified the type of vehicles required (and contains the language problematic to current Volt drivers). After seeing my post, GM is insisting that I have misinterpreted, and that the summary has no relevance whatsoever, and that the only requirement is "connected for electric charging purposes"- in which case we agree that it's actually worse, because it would indeed open up to any gas car with a socket, or engine block heater (not that we have those in CA, but still), etc. From my perspective, someone could put a battery tender on the 12v in his Suburban and technically be "electrically charging his vehicle".

Will report back, and will clarify one way or the other on the post when I can get a fairly reliable determination.

On the quota issue, I have that concern too- but I'm already being accused of being a conspiracy theorist, and the post was long enough already.

I sent the below to Lowenthal (d-lb):

Bonnie,
As an Electric Vehicle (EV) owner, I am concerned about ab475, which is sponsored and/or supported by you and carried by your colleague, Betsy Butler.
It is not a good idea to either negate the state issued parking sticker or to require that EVs only be parked at EVSE spots while plugged in. The EV community has a protocol that allows for EVSE sharing so that an arriving EV owner can read a time-specific placard on a parked and plugged in EV, and have permission to unplug that car once it is either charged or past a certain time (which indicates that it is charged sufficiently for the EV owner to get where they need to go). The arriving EV can safely unplug the charging EV, and use the station.
AB475 would subject the original EV to towing, fines, tickets and worse