TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — State lawmakers on a Senate panel approved two bills ahead of what's destined to be an electrifying future for travel.
The Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development Committee approved SB 138 that creates an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grant Program to help pay to install electric car charging stations, the Tallahassee Democrat reports.
A companion bill, SB 140, lays the foundation for creating a network of charging stations. It, too, imposes flat fees for electric and hybrid cars to make up for lost tax revenue a person would typically pay at the gas pump. With an electric car, of course, drivers skip the pump entirely.
The bill, if it passes by a two-thirds majority from the House and Senate and signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis, would tax the owner of an electric car weighing less than 10,000 pounds an additional $135. Anything heavier increases the fee to $235.
The Tallahassee Democrat says the money raised will be split between the Florida Department of Transportation and local governments, with some going to a grant program to build charging stations.
Although at-home charging stations are OK for the driver of an electric car to get around town, a network of commercial stations is eyed for those long road trips. New cars, like the Chevy Bolt EV and the Ford Mustang Mach-E, have a battery-only range of 259 miles and 300 miles, respectively.
A Senate analysis of SB 140 noted the range of a battery-only car is forecast to increase to about 450 miles in 2025 with new technology.
"The shift to electric vehicles is going to be the biggest shift you and I are going to see over the next decade," said state Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, to the committee, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
"Today, half a percent of vehicles on Florida roads are electric -- at the end of the decade it could be 15 percent to 20 percent of all cars sold."
DeSantis last summer announced electric car charging stations would pop-up along some of the state's highways, like Interstate 75 and Interstate 4, as part of the Volkswagen settlement for violating the Clean Air Act. Electrify America, which was created from the settlement, shows several charging stations near some of the major highways in Florida on its map.
Other companies offer charging stations to drivers, as well, with locations at grocery stores, retail locations and downtown areas.
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