OKLAHOMA CITY – Responding to heightened interest in electric vehicles, the state Corporation Commission adopted rules intended to ensure that public charging stations for electric-powered vehicles are properly calibrated and safely maintained.
The three-member panel approved the rules March 3 in a unanimous vote and submitted them to Governor Kevin Stitt and the state Legislature for approval, in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act.
The commission’s proposed regulations do not apply to certain charging stations, including those:
that are at a personal residence, including multifamily dwellings (apartments), workplaces or other nonpublic locations.
that provide electricity to the consumer at no cost.
used solely for dispensing electricity in connection with operations in which the amount used does not affect customer charges or compensation (for example, a store providing a free charging station on its property, or a paid parking lot that provides a charging station for which there is no charge based on the amount of energy delivered).
which have a charging capacity of less than 50 kilowatts.
Whenever compliance with any provision of the rules would “result in unreasonable hardship … or excessive expense,” the Corporation Commission may waive or modify the requirements “for good cause shown.”
Charging an electric vehicle at a public station owned or operated by a person or entity “not otherwise considered to be a rate-regulated public utility” is not considered to be a resale subject to the commission’s rate-setting authority.
A public charging station is not deemed to be a public utility. But public charging stations that are owned by a public utility must comply with the rules proposed by the Corporation Commission.
The operator of a public charging station must maintain third-party testing and inspection reports for three years, retain the documentation about installation of that station for three years, and retain calibration records for the life of the meter.
By New Year’s Day 2023, or within 30 days of opening a new public charging station, each station operator must provide certain information to the commission’s Public Utility Division:
the name of the charging station, its complete physical address, the type of facility where the station is located, and if necessary, directions from the nearest intersection.
the station’s global positioning system coordinates.
access days and times.
the number of type of chargers at the station (Level 1, Level 2, and/or DC fast charger).
specifics about how the customer is charged for electricity consumed.
contact information for the person(s) responsible for answering complaints, the station’s repair and maintenance, the primary emergency contact, and engineering operations, meter tests, and repairs.
The Corporation Commission must be notified within 30 calendar days of the opening or permanent closure of a public charging station. The commission also must be notified in writing if a public charging station is closed for maintenance and/or repairs for more than 15 business days.
Every charging station must be marked legibly to show the name, telephone number and email address of the person who is to be contacted in the event of emergencies, malfunctioning equipment, customer service, “and for other concerns.”
All electrical equipment must meet requirements of the most recent version the National Electrical Code as it pertains to wet, damp and hazardous conditions.
Each operator of a public charging station must provide, install, maintain and operate, at its own expense, “proper and sufficient equipment for the accurate measurement of electricity” delivered by that charging station.
Charging station meters must be tested at least once every three years.
In the event of a dispute between the charging station operator and a consumer as to the accuracy of a meter, the issue can be brought to the commission’s Consumer Services Division for resolution. Also, every operator of a public charging station must undertake “a full and prompt investigation of every formal, written complaint” submitted by a consumer.
If a proceeding is filed with the Corporation Commission to enforce testing, calibration and inspection-report requirements on a charging station, the commission may or may not charge the operator for the costs of that administrative action.
The commission’s rules were crafted after enactment last year of the Driving on Road Infrastructure with Vehicles of Electricity (DRIVE) Act (House Bill 2234), which went into effect Nov. 1.
A charging station operator that fails to meet the requirements of the commission’s rules, or any provision of the DRIVE Act, could be fined up to $500 per day per violation.
The new law levies a tax of 3 cents per kilowatt-hour or its equivalent on the electric current used to charge or recharge the battery or batteries of an electric vehicle, starting Jan. 1, 2024. Any tax revenue collected shall be apportioned to the DRIVE Revolving Fund and counties throughout the state. The measure provides that 85% of the monies shall be apportioned to the fund and 15% shall be apportioned to the counties.
The state Tax Commission is empowered to terminate a charging station owner’s operator license if the owner fails to remit the tax as required.
Charging stations constructed after November 1, 2021, shall use a metering system that is capable of imposing the cost for the charging service. Legacy chargers, and public charging stations that have never charged a fee for their use, are exempt from remitting the tax until 2041.
The tax is not applicable to electric vehicles charged at a private residence at which the owner or occupant of the residence uses electric power that’s paid for by the owner/occupant of the residence.
The new law allows tag agents to retain $3.56 for every electric vehicle they register. Agents also may retain 3.25% of the vehicle excise tax they collect on those vehicles.