SEVA Meeting Minutes – March 2021

The  Zoom meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m. by President Jay Donnaway, logging in from Maxwell’s shop in Los Angeles, where he was working for the week on Ram Promaster conversions. Kevin Boze issued the cry.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE – Board Vice President Grace Reamer reported on legislative progress in Olympia. SHB 1091, the low-carbon fuel standard, will have its first Senate hearing on March 10. It provides for a price on greenhouse-gas emissions, with 50 percent of the funds raised to go to a clean-fuels rewards program, subsidizing the cost of buying or leasing electric vehicles. Senator Hobbs, who chairs the Transportation Committee, has been skeptical. Grace asked Bill Trueit to comment. Bill said he’s known Hobbs for a number of years because he formerly chaired the 44th District Democrats. Bill said he has been trying to get a meeting to talk about current legislation. Costs incurred by constituents seem to be his major concern. Jay suggested the cost advantage for EV acquisition would be seen as an advantage for lower-income constituents, given EVs’ low fuel costs. Jon Jantz said he’d also like to talk to Hobbs. Grace also reported that a bill has just been introduced late in the session which will remove the $75 electrification-infrastructure fee from registration renewals of non-plugin hybrids. HB 1204, the Clean Cars 2030 bill, often called the Coltura bill, has been passed out of the House Transportation Committee, but with major changes. It’s no longer a mandate to ban gasoline cars as of the 2030 model year; it’s now a “goal.”  This takes teeth out of the bill, but it also sets a clear policy statement. Jon asked if the Coltura bill got so substantially revamped due to the Attorney General’s misgivings. Grace said that might be the case, but that the AG’s office was concerned about conflict with the Clean Air Act, which Coltura thinks should not really apply to climate change focus of the bill. HB 1388, the Rivian bill, has stalled. It’s before the House Consumer Protection and Business Committee. Jay mentioned that the committee chair is Steve Conway, a Democrat who represents Lakewood in Pierce County. Lakewood is next door to Steilacoom, where EV friend Dick Muri, formerly a Republican legislator, is about to be appointed mayor. Muri is ready to shake things up with a city EV fleet. HB 1287, the Mapping EV Infrastructure bill, has passed the House and gone on to the Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee. SB 5000, creating a sales-tax exemption for hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, passed 49-0 in the Senate and is now before the House Finance Committee.

LATE-BREAKING NEWS: Grace reported that the sales-tax exemption for electric bicycles just passed the House, 67-39. SB 5085, reducing the $150 EV fee to $30 for motorcycles, passed the Senate 48-1.

EVENTS – Grace suggested that in-person events might be possible by this summer. She asked about interest in a virtual event for Drive Electric Earth Week in April. Jay said Puget Sound Energy wants to promote events. He’s picked up some EVs from Craigslist which got there because people are getting promotional EVs from PSE. Grace said SEVA might get event help from Angela Song, the new EV engagement person at Seattle City Light. Phil Skoog has received a tentative date of May 2 from Issaquah XXX Root Beer for, possibly, a “cruise-in.” No one had any information about the Greenwood Auto Show in June, so it probably is not happening this year. Grace said that Drive Electric Washington is planning to put together a statewide newsletter, and they want to include a lot of resources. Grace has started a list and would like help adding resources such as other clubs and social-media groups,

CHARGING – Ann Wunderland looked for advice on setting up charging at her co-op. Jay said he knows about card-lock- or keypad-accessed free charging, but he doesn’t think there’s a fee-based system available that wouldn’t involve some charging network provider, such as Chargepoint, which takes a cut of the fee.  Someone could put together a back-send system; for instance, Clipper Creek doesn’t work with fee-based providers but they do have a touch-tone keypad that could be set up for tracking individual members’ usage.  Jay thought that a co-op like Ann’s would be better off just having the users split the bill, because the fee-based providers get something like $45,000 per pedestal, compared to a non-fee EVSE which might be $450-$1,000. Jay has two Clipper Creek Model 40s available. Phil said that at a hotel, he’s seen the Clipper Creek model with the keypad. That’s pretty much what Clipper Creek intends that feature for, rather than a cobbled billing system; it just gives the hotel some control over who’s using the EVSE.

MEMBERSHIP – Mark Schiller reported that we now have twenty active members. In the past year, it’s been closer to fifty, but renewal reminder notices need to be sent. Members are encouraged to renew their memberships online at www.seattleeva.org.

Theresa Ramsdell of Tesla Owners Washington described the new Tesla Engagement Hub, which replaces the online forums that are going away. The club is planning some events coming soon.

Cory Tsai reported that Rad Power Bikes has hit its one hundredth new hire in 2021. The total staff is now around 325. They’re growing rapidly.

Paul Kahle said he came across the Emerald Valley EVA website in Eugene.  They have monthly zoom meetings for newbies, and wanted to know if anyone here would like to run something like that. Jay said that Tacoma used to do something like that, and it would be an excellent addition to SEVA’s website.

Jay said we have invitations for speakers from groups like the Rotary Club.
Theo said his podcast co-host Theresa has moved back to Austria and likely won’t participate in more episodes. But Theo might put something together solo by this summer.

NEXT MEETING IS AT 7 P.M. TUESDAY, APRIL 13. WATCH FOR ZOOM LINK TO PARTICIPATE ONLINE