HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0608.054 2020-2022 PJ PWKTC
bil[ 120
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Sent: Monday, August 01, 2022 8:30 AM
To: T Burton
Cc: Council Testimony
Subject: RE: Please support Bill 120, a few changed recommended
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From:T Burton
Sent:Sunday,July 31, 2022 8:59 AM
To:Council Remote Testimony<councilremotetestimony@hawaiicounty.gov>
Subject: Please support Bill 120,a few changed recommended
Aloha,
Primary elections remind me of an enduring issue: long-time residents being outbid for homes,goods, and services by
immigrants from other states. (I am one of those immigrants.) Most new EVs are too expensive for most of us(including
myself), but especially for long-time residents.A bill encouraging parking spaces and charging stations for electric vehicles
must be modest,and it should not subsidize or appear to subsidize these immigrants. Bill 120 is indeed modest and, perhaps
with a few small changes,will be and seem to be fair.
Bill 120 comes too late for me. I bought a 2011 Nissan LEAF,one of only two affordable electrics, in the hope that we'd soon
have a functioning network of public chargers. In fact, most public chargers don't work,so I'm confined to a strip from Paauilo
to Keaau. Most new EV sedans and SUVs,though unaffordable for most of us, have at least 250 miles of range. Most owners of
these expensive cars own their own homes and can charge from home. In Hawaii County,these owners will need the public
chargers rarely. Buyers of trophy trucks and work EVs, with shorter ranges,will need them more.
Parking and charging for EVs is a valuable and scarce public resource, not a perk for specific groups of customers. In the bill's
additions to HCC Section 25-4-54.1, 1 therefor suggest:
Revise section (d)to specify stiff penalties for chargers that don't work. Believe me,they are much worse than no chargers.
Revise section (g)to make clear that the chargers shall be functioning the entire time that the parking lot is open to the public,
whether or not the businesses they serve are open.
Revise section (h)to encourage or mandate a high charging rate of cost, several times the rate of charging from home, plus a
hefty hourly fee for sitting in the space without charging.The rate must be high enough to encourage drivers to charge at
home when possible, and to provide a profit to the businesses that pay for servicing the chargers.
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In 5 to 10 years,we'll have a significant number of EVs over 8 years old,with batteries out of warranty and somewhat
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depleted, but still with another decade of life.These vehicles will need public chargers more than new EVs. We could give
these vehicles a break in the per-mile registration charge that replaces the gas tax.
Mahalo for reading!
Tom
Tom Burton P.E. 13455-M
Brahea Consulting (retired)
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