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Senate version of H944 would require public EV chargers to share real‑time data, expand transit grant priorities and align bridge rules
Summary
The Senate draft of H944 would make public EV chargers provide real‑time status, expand prioritization in transportation‑alternative grants to include sand‑and‑salt sheds, raise several grant caps, require condo associations not to unreasonably block EV charger installations, and add studies on intelligent speed assistance and vehicle history reporting.
Legislative counsel Damian Leonard told the committee the Senate version of H944 largely mirrors House language but makes several notable changes affecting chargers, grants and bridge rules. "This basically means that ChargePoint and others will make their data available to groups like Better Route Planner, PlugShare, etc., that consolidate the data from different networks so that drivers can find available charging stations," Leonard said, describing a statutory requirement that publicly available level‑2 and level‑3 chargers installed or reconditioned on or after Sept. 30, 2026, publish location, status, equipment type, charging speed and payment method to third‑party app developers.
Leonard said the charging‑network reporting standards in the bill reflect the federal NEVI program and California practice and are intended to standardize publicly available data rather than create a single state app. The committee discussed whether the Sept. 30, 2026, date should be delayed; Leonard reported industry feedback that a Jan. 1, 2027, implementation date would give manufacturers and network operators more time to adapt.
On grants, the Senate keeps an increase in the transportation alternatives program maximum and removes a previous 50% set‑aside for environmental mitigation. It also expands preferential weighting so two project types — bike‑and‑pedestrian projects and sand‑and‑salt‑shed projects — receive priority in scoring even though no specific set‑asides remain. Leonard summarized that the Senate raised this program's threshold and that section 34 increases another grant maximum to $1.2 million for the coming fiscal year.
Other provisions include a repeal of an outdated municipal heavy equipment loan fund provision, alignment of state bridge inspection language with national bridge inspection standards, and the addition of a bridge‑posting or closure violation to Title 23 traffic offenses. The Senate added a public‑transit demand‑response grant authorization (the final omnibus appropriations placed $300,000 in the budget), and it extended Agency of Transportation public‑private partnership authority to July 1, 2029.
The bill would also prevent unreasonable condominium or homeowners‑association restrictions on EV charger installation while allowing associations to impose reasonable architectural standards and to require licensed electricians and cost‑sharing where legitimately necessary. Sections proposing a jet fuel surcharge were removed after opposition in finance committee.
The Senate added a study on intelligent speed‑assistance devices for convicted extreme speeders and directed DMV (with the Attorney General and industry groups) to examine vehicle history report reliability after constituent complaints that steering defects were omitted from history reports. Leonard recommended committee testimony from industry witnesses — including ChargePoint and vehicle‑history companies — and noted several agencies (such as the Agency of Natural Resources on jurisdiction changes) had not yet had the chance to testify.
Next steps: Leonard said the official Senate draft will be posted once the chamber completes third reading edits and that the committee will prepare a side‑by‑side comparison when the official text is available.
