- The Council of the District of Columbia just unanimously passed a new bill that will bolster EV charging with a "right to charge" law for homeowners and renters.
- D.C. Councilman Charles Allen said that he expects the bill would add thousands of new chargers within the next few years. It also requires new or renovated units to have chargers installed.
- Renters can now petition their building's owner to add EV charging and they would be required to comply in certain circumstances.
It's one of the most common barriers we hear about when it comes to electric vehicle adoption: "What am I supposed to do if I live in an apartment?" And so far, solutions to that problem have been back-burnered. But Washington, D.C. may soon take some of the most proactive steps the U.S. has yet seen to guarantee charging access to renters and people who live in multi-family units.
This week, the District's legislative body, the Council of the District of Columbia, unanimously passed a bill that would empower many residents with a "right to charge" their EVs. If signed into law by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, the new law would provide a combination of government funding and new regulations to guarantee plug access at renovated buildings—and gas stations, too.
According to the bill text and a news release from the office of its author, D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen, the provisions of the new law would be vast. As it stands now, the law would require "all new or substantially improved" commercial and multi-unit buildings to include setups for EV chargers in parking garages or lots, if they have them, and provide dedicated EV parking spaces there. It will also offer financial assistance to those who want to install an EV charger at their homes.
The bill would require newly built or renovated single-family homes with driveway parking spots or garages to have at least a standard plug for Level 1 charging; grant condo unit owners or owner associations "the right to install EV charging ports" and require landlords to comply with a renter's request to install chargers, provided they meet various safety and insurance rules.
But landlords would get funding help to get the job done too. The bill establishes an Electric Vehicle Charging Incentive Program to create vouchers for property owners to supplement or fully cover the cost of the plug and installation, as local TV station WUSA first noted. Typically, home Level 2 EV chargers can be several hundred dollars, but installation can range from the same to around $2,000.
Perhaps most notably, any new or substantially renovated gas station in the District projected to sell more than one million gallons of gasoline per year will now have to add one 150 kW D.C. fast-charging station with two plugs from October 2025 onward.
"Some people hesitate about going electric because of 'range anxiety,' or the fear they don’t know when or where they will charge the car," Allen said in a statement. "But we need people to go electric—and fast. This bill sends a clear signal that coming soon, there are going to be a lot of chargers available in places where people live, work, and shop."
It's not clear yet whether Bowser will sign the bill, which has been in the works since late 2022. It could face legal challenges from opposition groups, too, including property owners or gas station operators. But it's a fairly landmark piece of legislation similar to "right to charge" laws seen in California, New York and other states.
Despite many headlines to the contrary, EV growth has been strong across the U.S. this year and last. But EV charger installations often do not keep pace with that growth, and faster DC Level 3 charging in particular is an expensive and onerous process. Most EV owners are single-family homeowners who can charge at home, but few solutions have arisen for apartment-dwellers and people who live in cities.
The District of Columbia isn't an especially big place. It only covers 68 square miles and had a population under 700,000 in 2023. But EVs are growing fast there. "As of 2023, there were around 8,100 electric vehicles registered in the District, an increase of 37% in registrations from 2022," Allen said in a statement. "That’s a clear trend showing more and more District residents are interested in purchasing an EV. Notably, that number does not capture electric vehicles driven into the District from other states."
And as a former D.C. resident myself, I can tell you that single, standalone homes are few and far between. It's a lot of row houses and apartment buildings. So this bill, which seems quite comprehensive, would ensure charging access to a community of drivers that has few other options for that right now.
Will laws like this one move the needle? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Contact the author: patrick.george@insideevs.com
