HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3686        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3742

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Thomas A. Golden, Jr.

_________________

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to electric vehicles expansion.

_______________

PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3686        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3742

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the One Hundred and Ninetieth General Court
(2017-2018)

_______________

An Act relative to electric vehicles expansion.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Chapter 21A of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following 2 sections:-

Section 27. The secretary or a designee, in consultation with the secretary of transportation, shall establish a competitive grant program to provide monies and technical assistance to a regional transit authority for the purpose of implementing innovative transportation planning and fleet electrification projects.  The monies shall be used to purchase and use electric vehicles and associated electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including public electric vehicle charging stations, as defined in section 16 of chapter 25A.  Special consideration shall be given to a regional transit authority to study the feasibility of replacing existing light-duty vehicle and bus fleets with electric vehicles; provided, that the regional transit authority provides service to a municipality that is authorized to receive funds for the purpose of expanding their transportation system by creating an intermodal, interconnected system that connects neighborhoods, college and university campuses, and downtown commercial and cultural districts pursuant to chapter 79 of the acts of 2014.

The secretary or a designee may consider a variety of funding sources to fund and implement the grant program, including, but not limited to: (i) the use of alternative compliance payments established and administered pursuant to section 11F of chapter 25A and (ii) the use of funds from the administration’s capital spending plans.

The secretary shall not prohibit a regional transit authority participating in the program from participating: (i) in electric vehicle infrastructure programs operated by an electric distribution company to defray costs of deploying electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including public electric vehicle charging stations; and (ii) in a partnership with a state university, community college, or private fleet operator for shared utilization of electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including public electric vehicle charging stations, to defray costs of deploying electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including public electric vehicle charging stations, and purchasing and using electric vehicles. The secretary may consider participation in a program described in clause (i) or (ii) by a regional transit authority in awarding a grant.

To be eligible for the program, a regional transit authority shall file an application with the secretary in a manner to be prescribed by the secretary consistent with the goals of the program. 

The secretary or a designee shall submit an annual report detailing the results of the program to the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on telecommunications, utilities, and energy and the clerks of the house of representatives and senate.

Section 28.  The secretary or a designee, in consultation with the carbon reduction research center, established by chapter 188 of the acts of 2016, may conduct a study or pilot project, or provide technical or financial assistance for the purpose of facilitating innovative transportation planning, fleet electrification, and emissions reductions.  

SECTION 2. Chapter 25A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 11I the following section:-

Section 11J. The commissioner shall establish an electric vehicle dealership rebate program to provide rebates to a car dealership in the commonwealth that sell or lease an eligible electric vehicle to a consumer. An eligible vehicle shall be an electric vehicle, as defined in section 16, which has a manufacturer's suggested retail price of not more than $75,000.  The rebate shall be $400 for each vehicle sold or leased; provided, that not less than $200 of the rebate shall be provided to the salesperson that sold or leased an electric vehicle; and provided, further that the commission of the salesperson shall remain unaffected by the receipt of a rebate.

The commissioner may promulgate rules and regulations for the electric vehicle dealership rebate program.

SECTION 3. No later than six months after the effective date of this act, distribution companies shall file pilot commercial tariffs with alternative rate structures to traditional demand charges to facilitate faster charging for light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles and evaluate the relative costs, benefits, and ancillary related benefits associated with different faster charging rate designs.

The department of public utilities shall, after notice and opportunity for public comment, approve, modify, or reject the tariffs.