Environmental and Transportation Stakeholders Petition Public Service Commission for More Electric Vehicle Infrastructure

New York -- Today, a coalition of 40 environmental, labor, and transportation industry stakeholders in New York submitted a formal petition to the New York Public Service Commission calling for an Order Establishing a Separate Proceeding to Advance New York’s Electric Vehicle (EV) Market. The requested proceeding would promote a coordinated, proactive approach to New York’s EV initiatives and the petition also asks that New York’s utilities submit proposals to accelerate installation of EV charging infrastructure and EV customer education.

With approximately 24,000 EVs and 2,000 charging stations, New York is currently far from meeting its 2025 zero emission vehicle goals (around 850,000 EVs on the road) and 2021 ChargeNY goals (10,000 charging stations). The Commission is planning to open a new docket to evaluate utility EV-only rate proposals due on April 1st, as required by legislation passed last year. The petition asks that the docket be expanded to encompass all current and future state and utility EV initiatives.

In addition to the EV-only rate proposals, the petition also calls for utility EV charging infrastructure proposals (focusing on multi-unit dwellings, low-income communities, DC fast chargers, and medium and heavy-duty EVs, including buses) and for utility proposals on customer EV education/outreach by the same April 1st deadline. The petition encourages the Commission to act on its requests as soon as possible to ensure New York achieves its transportation and climate goals.

Quotes in response from petition signers are below:

“It is time for the Public Service Commission to ensure that New York’s utilities do their part to help the Empire State achieve its climate goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent across all sectors by 2030 and help deliver on the states Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) and ChargeNY targets.  As the State’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions comes from transportation, electrifying New York’s transportation sector will reduce climate pollution and associated healthcare costs by cleaning up our air and water and improving the health of all New Yorkers. When electric vehicle charging is powered by clean wind and solar energy,  it provides even more economic benefits by creating jobs, lowering electricity rates, and reducing the billions of dollars New York sends out-of-state every year for dirty transportation fuels. ” - Lisa Dix, Senior New York Representative, Sierra Club

"Electrifying New York’s modes of transportation is critical to reducing the greenhouse gas emissions harming our health and the environment. The state’s utilities can, and should, be vital allies in accelerating New York’s electric vehicle progress to clean the air for all New Yorkers and meet our climate goals.”- Noah Garcia, Transportation Policy Analyst, Natural Resources Defense Council

“We are pleased to join a diverse range of stakeholders in urging a stronger policy focus and urgent attention by the Commission to the EV infrastructure gap in New York State.  The Alliance consists of about 30 companies including utilities and EV equipment vendors, General Motors and other companies who believe in collaboration and a big-tent approach to these complex issues.  Our member utilities certainly have a strong and robust role to play in building out this infrastructure, and we believe that a stronger focus by the Commission should yield smarter tariffs and programs supported by many parties that build out more EV infrastructure, allow the utilities to manage these flexible loads better, and provide great benefits to EV owners and ultimately all ratepayers if done properly.” - Philip B. Jones, Executive Director of the Alliance for Transportation Electrification, Former President of NARUC

“Successfully marketing the electric car will require building a new network of hundreds of thousands of charging stations—both in commercial and residential venues—where owners can plug in their vehicles. Throughout the years,  the skilled and trained members of the IBEW helped build the current electric grid that powers our homes and offices.  Today we have the opportunity to go a step further in ensuring that the infrastructure needed to include newer cleaner technologies, like electric cars, is made a reality.  We encourage the Public Service Commission to direct a proceeding wherein stakeholders can work together to achieve New York’s ZEV’s goals, while creating good, sustainable jobs and strengthening our economy in New York State.” -   Ellen Redmond, International Representative, IBEW Third District

“The Pace Energy and Climate Center strongly supports this petition as an essential next step in accelerating transportation electrification and market growth in New York, building on our experience working with stakeholders in Westchester County over the past four years to advance pro-EV markets." -  Karl R. Rábago, executive director at Pace

“Transportation electrification will help meet statewide energy and environmental goals and ensure New Yorkers have the world-class EV charging network they deserve,” said Kevin George Miller, Director of Public Policy for ChargePoint. “This petition is an opportunity to build on the Cuomo Administration’s commitment to revolutionizing transportation in New York. Utilities will play a critical role in this transition, and ChargePoint urges the PSC to support electric vehicle charging proposals by utilities that complement the private market, promote site host choice and control in charging equipment and network services, and ensure equitable access to electric transportation across the state.”

"In order to grow the landscape of Electric Vehicles and EV infrastructure, it is critical to provide access points for low-income and communities of color to participate in the market. Utilities should be required to provide project proposals that consider all segments of the population and all dwelling types along with public modes of transportation. The benefits of electrification should be made equitable through the prioritization of vulnerable populations -whose health are most directly affected by GHG emissions- in rate structuring and EV infrastructure deployment." - Eddie Bautista, Executive Director of The New York City Environmental Justice Alliance.  

“As we know, the impacts of climate change are not reversible, and New York needs to lead and rise to this challenge. By accelerating the expansion of electric vehicle infrastructure, the Public Service Commission can help New York State make major strides in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving public health, reducing healthcare costs, and creating new jobs for communities impacted the most by climate catastrophe" Maritza Silva-Farrell, Executive Director of ALIGN