An environmental group on Wednesday sued two California cities and a county for failing to follow state laws that require local governments to develop an expedited permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations.
What happened: Coalition for Clean Air, a California-based nonprofit, filed complaints against Shasta County and the cities of Compton and Shafter in state courts, requesting court orders that would require the cities to comply with AB 1236 and AB 970, laws passed in 2015 and 2021, respectively.
Those laws direct local governments to adopt streamlining ordinances and checklists for applicants seeking permits for EV charger installation and limit the review of charger projects to just health and safety requirements.
“For years, state law has required cities and counties to make it fast and easy to build EV charging stations, but far too many local governments have ignored this mandate,” Joseph Lyou, the group’s president and CEO, said in a statement.
