The public and private sectors in Michigan are aligned behind goals of building out electric vehicle charging infrastructure and supporting consumer purchases of electric vehicles. Yet at the local level, physical and regulatory infrastructure build-out is only just beginning and faces challenges to meet the scale and pace of the growing market. Utilities, municipalities, site hosts, and other stakeholders are striving to balance short-run action with long-term needs for system-wide coordination and strategy. Simultaneously, massive shifts in supply chains, as well as assembly and production lines, are on the horizon. These changes, along with job opportunities in the installation and maintenance of charging infrastructure, will have significant implications for workers both today and in the future. The Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will provide billions in critical federal funding to support the transition to electric vehicles and will flow through state agencies over the next several years. Harmonized policies at the local, state, and federal levels will be needed to enable and support a successful transition to a zero-carbon transportation system.

The brief proposes a series of policy recommendations to expand electric vehicle (EV) adoption and charging infrastructure across the state. The policies were informed by a roundtable discussion with stakeholders including companies, policymakers and community organizations.

In the brief, C2ES identifies critical outcomes and targeted policies to achieve them:

• Expanding access to charging infrastructure: establishing state-level incentives and tax rebates/credits for purchase and installation of EV equipment to augment IRA and IIJA incentives; updated building codes for EV readiness; standardization of software and hardware for interoperability; creating state-level incentives for commercial medium- and heavy-duty vehicle charging infrastructure to complement federal incentives under the IRA; and establishing a statewide low-carbon fuel standard.
• Future-proofing charging infrastructure: standardizing infrastructure installed today to meet the needs of future vehicles; and incentivizing bidirectional charging technology and strategic deployment of on-site storage capacity.
• Providing low-carbon alternative mobility solutions: improved public transportation options and reduced fares in high density regions and areas with greater concentrations of low-income residents and residents of color; and providing greater access to micromobility options like bikes and scooters.
• Supporting ZEV manufacturing workforce: K-12 curricula for problem-solving and project management; collaboration with employers for zero-emission vehicle manufacturing training programs; and strategies to attract top global talent, including by providing a path to citizenship.