Governor makes recommendations on parking violations for EV charging spaces

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Motorists in Virginia could soon have another parking regulation to comply with.

Although Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoed SB 278, which seeks to impose penalties for parking non-electric vehicles in spaces designated for electric charging, he isn’t against the concept.

SB 278 is a bill that was identical to HB 450. In the governor’s veto explanation for SB 278, he said “I have recommended amendments to House Bill 450 that accomplish the same purpose of this bill.”

HB 450, as it was presented to the governor, “prohibits a person from parking a vehicle not capable of receiving an electric charge in a space clearly marked as reserved for charging electric vehicles.”

One of Youngkin’s recommendations is to add language that would go further and also impose penalties on those with plug-in electric vehicles that are left in charging station parking spaces but are not in the process of charging.

Although the governor believes the law should be more restrictive than the original bill, he doesn’t want to see the fine as steep as what’s currently proposed.

HB 450 allows a fine of up to $50 for a violation. Governor Youngkin's recommendations include lowering the maximum penalty to $25.

In either case, if this measure makes its way to becoming a law, both the original version and the governor’s recommended version deem that the fine could only be assessed when charging station spaces are marked with signage that warns of a penalty and shows the maximum amount.

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