Ezra Dyer of Car & Driver has a piece on the effort by freshman North Carolina state representative Ben Moss to physically destroy free electric car chargers. Which is kind of weird because his region of North Carolina has some jobs that participate in the electric car industry but nothing notable in oil and gas. But it does seem like the kind of pet issue that could make a state rep’s career.
Here’s the idea. Allocate $50,000 to tear down the existing chargers, unless free gasoline and diesel is offered side by side. Why should fossil fuel burners pay to power their cars while EV owners drive for free? As for small business owners, if they choose to offer charging stations as an inducement to customers, the bill specified that they must itemize how much of the cost for their goods and services is a result of the expense of providing electricity. Dyer puts it this way:
That way, anyone who showed up for dinner in an F-150 (not the electric one) can get mad that their jalapeño poppers helped pay for a business expense not directly related to them. It’s the same way you demand to know how much Applebee’s spends to keep the lights on in its parking lot overnight, when you’re not there.
Sometimes we see industries gain control of politicians through donations and other behind-the-scenes support, but it’s possible to basically apply to be a fossil fuel bitch. All you have to do is propose the most absurdly pro-fossil fuel bill imaginable and the right people are bound to notice, and it won’t even require a feature in Car & Driver.
I know this is a chicken and egg question in Rep. Moss’s case. Who’s to say his whole campaign wasn’t conceived in an American Petroleum Institute boardroom. If they didn’t own him from the start, he’s made it clear that he’s for sale going forward. Maybe this bill will go nowhere, but Moss could be a U.S. Senator or even the governor someday, if he wins the attention and support of the right people. Smart.
My favorite part from that quote:
“It’s the same way you demand to know how much Applebee’s spends to keep the lights on in its parking lot overnight, when you’re not there.”
That statement is just bonkers. I have never met anyone who was concerned about how much any business spends on their outdoor lighting.
My best guess is that this is what passes for a “reasoned” argument in some circles.
This is easily one of the more asinine pieces of legislation I’ve seen, and yet I can imagine it passing. Yeah, the Dem Governor can use his veto power, but if memory serves it doesn’t take much to over-ride a veto in NC. It’s not going to stop the manufacture and purchase of EVs. I live in a state that tried to deter its residents from buying EVs and hybrids by implementing a regressive auto registration fee to EV and hybrid owners. It didn’t work. Then again, my state’s legislators were never the sharpest knives in the drawer.
This is so bizarre. I’m sure those “free” chargers are the slow-charge kind, and not fast chargers. Just like the little packets of ketchup they give out with your fries are not a whole bottle.
For example: we just got back from a 14-hour trip with an EV. The only “free” charges we got were from a car dealer (half an hour for 1-2 slow bars of charge) and a fancy hotel that was extra expensive, where the “free” charge was probably rolled into the total. It’s not like the hotel charges us extra for the electricity for using elevator.
But those kind of facts never stopped anyone from finding something to scream about. Yes, bonkers.
Where are they getting this idea that EV drivers charge up for free? Walmart, bless their hearts, have installed banks of chargers outside many of their locations, because it makes economic sense for them. EV drivers *pay* to use the chargers, and then have a convenient place to shop while they wait (15-60 minutes), increasing WM’s sales too. Win-win, even if you don’t like WM.
The typical Electrify America chargers pictured above are definitely fast chargers, and you definitely have to pay for whatever you get out of them. Again, a manufactured outrage for people who don’t know any better. But optimistically, there are many EV-curious people out there, and EVs are becoming more and more accessible, so the outrage probably won’t get enough fuel (ahem – no pun intended) to keep it going.