WARNING to Oklahoma & ALL of America: Your electric bills are skyrocketing due to the corporate welfare you’re providing to the EV industry & an eventual NATIONALIZATION of the energy industry

Americans who have never been inside an electric vehicle (EV) are paying higher power bills to help EV owners charge up on the cheap.

Power companies all over the country are hiking rates on residential and commercial power bills so that they can subsidize the cost of opening power company-owned EV charging stations. The power companies persuade politicians to allow them to raise everyone’s power bills, claiming that it will accelerate their “green” initiatives. 

This phenomenon is not isolated to Democrat-dominated states. Power companies in red states and blue states alike have seen green in the high-speed EV charging marketplace. 

• Georgia Power used ratepayer funds to build, own and operate more than 50 EV chargers throughout the state.
• Florida Power and Light is building a network of high-speed chargers, located mostly in the backs of parking lots without any of the amenities that drivers expect when they stop to refuel.
• Entergy Arkansas sought approval to build 12 high-speed charging stations throughout the state in 2022.
• Xcel Energy in Minnesota is asking to use nearly $200 million in ratepayer funds to build 759 high-speed chargers throughout their service area.

Not only do these power-company owned charging stations cause power bills to go up, they also discourage any private business from getting into the EV charging marketplace.

These high-speed chargers are necessary for anyone driving an EV far from home who needs to charge up quickly and get back on the road. Gas stations, truck stops, convenience stores and other retailers are natural spots for these chargers, with the snacks, restrooms, amenities, security and locations that drivers have come to expect.

However, the owners of these businesses are hesitant to begin offering EV charging at their locations when the power company has the capacity to undercut them at any point.

Charge Ahead Partnership (CAP), a coalition of businesses, individuals and organizations working to expand access to the EV charging marketplace, is pushing back.

The coalition is composed of hundreds of retailers, gas stations, truck stops, convenience stores and other commercial entities that want to profitably sell EV charging to their customers, but know they can’t compete against a government sanctioned monopoly.

Jay Smith, executive director of CAP, said their organization is “fuel agnostic,” and is focused on establishing a level playing field for the sale of EV charging.

“We are advocating for a free and fair marketplace where entrepreneurs, small businesses and fuel retailers can profitably offer EV charging,” Smith said. “Right now, very few businesses will risk their own money to install and operate EV chargers because the power company could open up a charger across the street and render their investment worthless.”

Smith said the rest of the country should learn from California’s mistakes. In November, the California Public Utilities Commission established a new rebate program for EV charging businesses, and the commission explicitly forbid utilities from participating in the new program. More than a decade of utilities having a near monopoly on EV charging stations had caused residential and commercial power bills to skyrocket.

“The utilities will not be permitted to own any of this infrastructure,” California PUC Commissioner Clifford Rechtshaffen said at a November meeting while announcing the new program.“ And the rationale for that is that will mean lower cost for ratepayers because the chargers and other equipment will not be in the utility rate base.”

As state legislators convene this year, lawmakers all over the country are considering legislation that could either level the playing field in EV charging, or hand power companies additional latitude to corner the market.

Bills in Arizona, Georgia and Oklahoma would all scale back power companies’ ability to subsidize utility-owned EV charging stations through their existing ratepayers. The bills would either prohibit the practice all together, or phase it out over a number of years.

Oklahoma Senator Chuck Hall sponsored a bill that would prohibit power companies from subsidizing EV charging stations by raising electric rates. Hall described the public utilities as “vital partners” and said his legislation would enable them to focus on their core responsibility of generating and distributing electricity.

“The most logical place for EV drivers to charge up while on a long road trip is at the existing retailers and commercial locations that already dot the interstate,” Hall said. “This bill would make that possible and establish Oklahoma as a leader in developing common-sense and forward-thinking EV charging policy.”

While a handful of states are progressing toward an open and competitive EV charging marketplace, others are doubling down on utilities building their own EV charging stations on the backs of captive ratepayers.

In New Hampshire and Minnesota, lawmakers have filed bills that would make it significantly easier for power companies to build EV charging stations that are paid for by ratepayers.

“That legislation would ensure that no private businesses can offer EV charging in Minnesota or New Hampshire,” Smith said. “The irony is that this legislation is being pitched as a ‘green’ solution. In reality, this bill will line the power company’s pockets, raise power bills on everyday residents and prevent small businesses and entrepreneurs from entering the marketplace. And it will slow the overall development of a reliable and competitive EV charging network.”

To learn more about the effort to bring free market principles to EV charging, visit www.ChargeAheadPartnership.com  

Editor
Oklahoma Digest