Lawmakers Applaud Passage Of Code Update For New Buildings

Press release from the Mayor's Office:

June 28, 2021

Mayor & Council unanimously approved an amendment to the City of Tucson Building Code requiring the installation of an Electric Vehicle (EV) outlet in new one and two-family residential construction. In addition, Mayor & Council gave city staff direction to begin the process of developing similar code amendments for EV charging outlets in new multi-family residential and commercial construction.

Promoting EV-Ready capability in new residential and commercial construction is a key component of the City of Tucson’s Electric Vehicle Roadmap, which outlines a path for the City of Tucson to rapidly advance the adoption of electric vehicles within city operations and community-wide. In addition, this effort will help achieve goals in the Climate Emergency Declaration that was adopted by Mayor & Council last year.

“With this action, we are taking an important step to usher in and increase access to EV technology, improve air quality, and avoid costly home retrofits,” said Mayor Romero. “We are preparing the City of Tucson to be at the forefront in the adoption of a clean, renewable transportation system.”

"This is the continuation of the strong work of my predecessor, Paul Durham, and the Ward 3 and City staff. The new EV-Readiness policy is a sensible and reasonable approach and investment. This sets the foundation for the inevitable future of electric vehicles and the reduction of the use of fossil fuels. This will enhance our climate resiliency and adaption while cutting down our carbon footprint," said Councilmember Uhlich.

"Removing barriers to electric vehicle adoption is a critical part of a community-wide strategy to reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector," said Susan Gray, President and CEO of Tucson Electric Power. "This code change will help maximize the benefits of our transition to cleaner, greener energy resources."

“With the new requirement for new residential construction, EV-Ready capabilities will now be that much more accessible for people to make a choice,” said Vanessa Gallego, Chair of the City’s Commission on Climate, Energy and Sustainability (CCES). “Policies that push for change are exactly what we need. As our city endures one of the hottest summers on record, we know the biggest changes for climate resilience need to happen today. I applaud the leadership of our Mayor Regina Romero and the Council for bold moves for our community.”

An analysis conducted by CCES found that it typically costs around $200 to include an EV outlet in the construction of a new residential home. Along with a $100 incentive from Tucson Electric Power (TEP), the total cost per home is approximately $100. This is compared to an average cost of $1250+ (with an incentive from TEP) to go back and retrofit an existing home with an EV outlet.

This press release was produced by the Mayor's Office. The views expressed here are the author's own.