Bill Text: HI HB238 | 2020 | Regular Session | Amended

---

Bill Title: Relating To Electric Vehicles.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-12-01 - Carried over to 2020 Regular Session. [HB238 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2020-HB238-Amended.html

---

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	238
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO ELECTRIC VEHICLES.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that on a per mile basis, it is significantly less expensive to commute in an electric vehicle than it is to commute in a gas-powered automobile.  Residents may lower their cost of living by relying on local renewable energy for transportation and transitioning to less-expensive vehicles and transportation systems that are powered by renewable energy.  Currently, less than one per cent of registered passenger vehicles in the State are electric vehicles.  The legislature, by Act 168, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, authorized the department of transportation to adopt rules that would provide incentives for registration, licensing, parking, and operation of electric vehicles.  Act 168, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, also provides other incentives for electric vehicles, including exemption from parking fees under certain conditions.  The legislature recognizes that these incentives, due to sunset on June 30, 2020, are important to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles in the State.

     The purpose of this Act is to:

     (1)  Apply the same incentives and exemptions to fuel cell electric vehicles as are provided to other types of electric vehicles

     (2)  Place fuel cell electric vehicles within the same top-tier priority category as other electric vehicles for purchase of new vehicles by state and county entities; and

     (3)  Extend the sunset date of Act 168, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, for electric vehicle parking and charging station requirements to June 30, 2030, and include facilities for fuel cell electric vehicles in the requirements.

     SECTION 2.  Section 103D-412, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

     1.  By amending subsection (b) to read:

     "(b)  Beginning January 1, 2010, all state and county entities, when purchasing new vehicles, shall seek vehicles with reduced dependence on petroleum-based fuels that meet the needs of the agency.  Priority for selecting vehicles shall be as follows:

     (1)  Electric [or] vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles[;

     (2)  Hydrogen or], or fuel cell electric vehicles;

    [(3)] (2)  Other alternative fuel vehicles;

    [(4)] (3)  Hybrid electric vehicles; and

    [(5)] (4)  Vehicles that are identified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in its annual "Fuel Economy Leaders" report as being among the top performers for fuel economy in their class."

     2.  By amending subsection (c) to read:

     "(c)  For the purposes of this section:

     "Agency" means a state agency, office, or department.

     "Alternative fuel" means alcohol fuels, mixtures containing eighty-five per cent or more by volume of alcohols with gasoline or other fuels, natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen, biodiesel, mixtures containing twenty per cent or more by volume of biodiesel with diesel or other fuels, other fuels derived from biological materials, and electricity provided by off-board energy sources.

     "Covered fleet" has the same meaning as contained in 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 490 Subpart C.

     "Excluded vehicles" has the same meaning as provided in 10 Code of Federal Regulations section 490.3.

     "Fuel cell electric vehicle" means a zero-emission electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell to convert hydrogen gas and oxygen into electricity that is used in a vehicle powertrain for propulsion.

     "Light-duty motor vehicle" has the same meaning as contained in 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 490, not including any vehicle incapable of traveling on highways or any vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating greater than eight thousand five hundred pounds."

     SECTION 3.  Section 291-71, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

     "(b)  For the purposes of this section:

     "Electric vehicle" means:

     (1)  A neighborhood electric vehicle as defined in section 286-2; [or]

     (2)  A vehicle, with four or more wheels, that draws propulsion energy from a battery with at least four kilowatt hours of energy storage capacity that can be recharged from an external source of electricity[.]; or

     (3)  A fuel cell electric vehicle.

     "Electric vehicle charging system" means a system that:

     (1)  Is capable of providing electricity from a non-vehicle source to charge the batteries of one or more electric vehicles;

     (2)  Meets recognized standards, including standard SAE J1772 of SAE International; and

     (3)  Is designed and installed in compliance with article 625 of the National Electrical Code[.];

provided that the term shall not include facilities or systems for refueling the hydrogen storage tank of a fuel cell electric vehicle.

     "Fuel cell electric vehicle" means a zero-emission electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell to convert hydrogen gas and oxygen into electricity that is used in a vehicle powertrain for propulsion.

     "Place of public accommodation" has the same meaning as that provided in section 489-2."

     SECTION 4.  Act 168, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, is amended as follows:

      1.  By amending section 2 to read:

     "SECTION 2.  (a)  The department of transportation may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes, for the registration of, and issuance of special license plates for, electric vehicles.

     (b)  An electric vehicle on which an electric vehicle license plate is affixed shall be exempt from payment of parking fees, including those collected through parking meters, charged by any state or county authority in this State, except that this exemption shall not apply:

     (1)  For more than two and one-half hours of metered parking, or the maximum amount of time the meter allows, whichever is longer; [or]

     (2)  [To parking fees assessed in increments longer than one twenty-four-hour day, including weekly, monthly, or annual parking permits.] For more than two hours total of metered parking within a single parking lot per day regardless of whether the electric car is parked in a single metered stall or in successive metered stalls in the same lot; or

     (3)  For non-metered parking stalls, for any period longer than a total of four hours per day, regardless of whether the electric car is parked in a single stall or in successive stalls in the same lot.

     (c)  An electric vehicle on which an electric vehicle license plate is affixed shall be exempt from high occupancy vehicle lane restrictions.

     (d)  For the purposes of this Act:

     "Electric vehicle" means:

     (1)  A neighborhood electric vehicle; [or]

     (2)  A vehicle, with four or more wheels, that draws propulsion energy from a battery with at least four kilowatt hours of energy storage capacity that can be recharged from an external source of electricity[.]; or

     (3)  A fuel cell electric vehicle.

     "Fuel cell electric vehicle" means a zero-emission electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell to convert hydrogen gas and oxygen into electricity that is used in a vehicle powertrain for propulsion."

      2.  By amending section 4 to read:

     "SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval and shall be repealed on [June 30, 2020.] June 30, 2030."

     SECTION 5.  This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

     SECTION 6.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2100.

 

Report Title:

Electric Vehicles; Rules; Incentives; Sunset Date

 

Description:

Applies the same rules, incentives, and public purchasing priorities to fuel cell electric vehicles as to other types of electric vehicles.  Amends parking fee exemptions for electric vehicles.  Extends sunset date for electric vehicle rules and incentives by 10 years to June 30, 2030.  (HB238 HD1)

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.