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Abstract

California recently enacted a law that gives the California Energy Commission authority to require that Electric Vehicles (“EVs”) sold in California be capable of bidirectional charging. A bidirectional EV is capable of sending energy stored in the EV battery to a person’s home and to the grid. Bidirectional EVs are a novel step in the right direction in the global fight against climate change. They offer a substantial and mobile power source to communities recovering from natural disasters and can offset the demand for nonrenewable energy consumption by storing solar, wind and other renewable energy, then sending that energy back to the grid when renewables are not producing enough to meet the energy demand.
However, equipping an EV with the bidirectional function comes with a price: the vehicle itself, and the charging station that an EV owner must use to take advantage of the bidirectional function, are more expensive. While ensuring that EVs are capable of bidirectional charging is a step in the right direction, consumers that are unable to afford the expensive bidirectional charging stations will be unable to take advantage of the bidirectional charging function. Using California as an example, this note argues that states and the federal government should adjust existing charging station incentives so that consumers purchasing a bidirectional charging station can receive a proportional benefit relative to their higher cost, to those that opt to purchase a monodirectional charging station. This note also argues that in order to incentivize EV owners to use the bidirectional function, states should ensure that consumers may opt-in to time-of-use (“TOU”) rates.

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