MADISON — Governor Tony Evers signed Senator Howard Marklein’s electric vehicle (EV) charging bills into law on March 20. Act 121 and Act 122 allow private-sector businesses to own and operate EV charging facilities without being regulated as a utility. The bills also enabled Wisconsin to capture $78 million in Federal funding that will be distributed to private-sector businesses to help construct EV charging infrastructure.

“I authored this legislation on behalf of the many private-sector businesses who want to participate in the EV charging industry,” Marklein said. “I don’t know if EVs will ever be as popular as some may hope, but now, at least, the free market can decide in Wisconsin. We just needed to get government out of the way.”

Act 121 primarily allows private sector businesses to construct and sell electricity by the kilowatt hour.  Former law regulated everyone who sells electricity in Wisconsin as a utility. This was a barrier for private-sector participation in the industry.  Act 121 combined with Act 122 enables Wisconsin to capture nearly $78 million in Federal funding that will be distributed to private-sector businesses to help construct electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Act 121 also creates an excise tax of $.03 per kilowatt hour to contribute to the state’s Transportation Fund, which pays for road maintenance and construction in Wisconsin. This creates parity for electric vehicle charging with the gas tax for people who charge outside of their homes. 

“More than 40 stakeholder groups participated in the development of this legislation,” Sen. Marklein said. “This bill was an exercise in compromise in order to reach our goal: to allow the private sector to address the demands of the marketplace.”