GOBiz details AB1236/AB970 streamlining and AG legal alert to smooth ZEV permitting

Elsa Owls, identified by staff as a ZEV market development specialist at the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GOBiz), told Transportation Commission attendees that AB1236 requires jurisdictions to provide administrative approval for EV charging permits and that AB970 establishes binding review timelines for completed applications.

"AB1236 requires each jurisdiction to do an administrative approval for EV charging permits," Elsa said, adding that jurisdictions should publish checklists, accept electronic signatures and provide a single deficiency notice so applicants know all missing items at once. She described the statutory review windows: shorter timelines for smaller installations and longer timelines for larger projects.

Hannah Goldsmith, assistant deputy director for legal affairs at GOBiz, said AB1236 and AB970 are codified in Government Code sections 65850.7 and 65850.71 and reviewed the March 2025 Attorney General legal alert. The alert, she said, clarifies that local zoning rules and non–health and safety conditions cannot be used to improperly block streamlined projects and that discretionary reviews such as conditional use permits are generally not allowed unless a health-and-safety impact has been formally found.

"The legal alert clarifies what is expected of local jurisdictions when they're reviewing permit applications for EV charging station projects," Goldsmith said, noting the alert addresses zoning preemption, the limits of discretionary review, and the obligation for jurisdictions to adopt implementing ordinances and a public checklist.

Both presenters highlighted recurring practical issues for medium- and heavy-duty charging depots: jurisdictions sometimes apply zoning tests or non-integral requirements (for example, accessory buildings or aesthetic conditions) that are outside AB1236's streamlined scope. Goldsmith recommended that project sponsors and jurisdictions decouple permits so charging infrastructure components (chargers, conduit, trenching) can proceed under streamlining while separate reviews proceed for non-integral components such as buildings.

Staff said GOBiz tracks implementation across jurisdictions and offers technical assistance; attendees were directed to GOBiz materials and the Attorney General legal alert for guidance. The presentation closed with an offer that GOBiz and the commission would help mediate local barriers to ensure streamlining timelines are met.