(a) (1) Persons desiring to use an electric vehicle charging station that requires payment of a fee shall not be required to pay a subscription fee in order to use the station, and shall not be required to obtain membership in any club, association, or organization as a condition of using the station. The total actual charges for the use of an electric vehicle charging station, including any additional network roaming charges for nonmembers, shall be disclosed to the public at the point of sale.

(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an electric vehicle charging station may offer services on a subscription- or membership-only basis provided those electric vehicle charging stations allow nonsubscribers or nonmembers the ability to use the electric vehicle charging station through the payment options detailed in paragraph (3).

(3) (A) An electric vehicle charging station that requires payment of a fee and that is first installed or first made publicly available on or after the effective date of this paragraph, at a minimum, shall provide both of the following:

(i) A contactless payment method that accepts major credit and debit cards. For purposes of this clause, “contactless payment method” means a secure method for consumers to purchase services using a debit card, credit card, smartcard, or another payment device, by using radio frequency identification (RFID) technology and near-field communication (NFC).

(ii) Either an automated toll-free telephone number or a short message system (SMS) that provides the electric vehicle charging customer with the option to initiate a charging session and submit payment.

(B) A direct current fast charging station that is first installed or first made publicly available on or after the effective date of this paragraph shall also include Plug and Charge payment capabilities meeting the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 15118 standard no later than one year after this effective date of this paragraph.

(C) The commission, by regulation that is effective no earlier than January 1, 2028, may add to or subtract from payment methods required by this paragraph, as appropriate in light of changing technologies.

(b) The service provider of electric vehicle service equipment at an electric vehicle charging station or its designee shall disclose to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory the electric vehicle charging station’s geographic location, a schedule of fees, accepted methods of payment, and the amount of network roaming charges for nonmembers, if any.

(c) Electric vehicle charging stations shall be labeled in accordance with Part 309 of Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and, where commercially reasonable and feasible, may be clearly marked with appropriate directional signage in the parking area or facility where they are located.

(d) If no interoperability billing standards have been adopted by a national standards organization by January 1, 2015, the commission may adopt interoperability billing standards for network roaming payment methods for electric vehicle charging stations. If the commission adopts interoperability billing standards, all electric vehicle charging stations that require payment shall meet those standards within one year. Any standards adopted by the commission shall consider other governmental or industry-developed interoperability billing standards and may adopt interoperability billing standards promulgated by an outside authoritative body.

(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 52, Sec. 4. (SB 123) Effective July 10, 2023.)