A number of automakers have committed to offering an assortment of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles but the charging infrastructure in the United States still needs a lot of work.
While a handful of companies have stepped up and begun installing their own charging stations, several states have rejected plans by utility companies hoping to get in on the action.
As The Detroit News reports, a number of different utility companies have proposed building charging stations and then passing the cost onto their customers. This hasn't gone over well with regulators who believe it would be unfair to charge all utility customers for a service that will only be used by a few people.
Officials in California approved plans for utilities to build more than 12,500 charging stations last year but similar proposals in Michigan, Missouri, and Kansas have all been shot down. In Kansas, the state's Corporation Commission determined the private sector should invest in electric vehicles rather than have "ratepayers finance the speculative venture."
The solution seems relatively simple as utilities in Kentucky are building charging stations and only billing people who use them. Of course, that probably won't stop companies from trying to wiggle out of paying for their own stations.
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