Can California handle moving toward electric

The California Air Resources Board approved a plan to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035

The California Air Resources Board approved a plan to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035

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The California Air Resources Board approved a plan to ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035

California officials are moving ahead with a plan to start banning the sale of gas-powered cars in the next 13 years, but questions remain about how it will happen and if California is ready.

The California Air Resources Board approved a plan Thursday to require all new cars, trucks and SUVs to run on electricity or hydrogen by 2035. The policy, which is a phased approach, still allows Californians to keep driving gas-powered vehicles and buying used ones, but no new models will be sold in the state.

One fifth of automakers’ sales after 2035 could be plug-in hybrids, but the rest must be powered solely by electricity or hydrogen. If the plan is approved, automakers that do not meet that goal could be fined $20,000 per vehicle sold short of that goal.

Thursday's decision comes two years after Gov. Gavin Newsom first directed regulators to consider such a policy. One of the next steps for officials is to build up the infrastructure to be able to handle the expected increase in electric vehicles on the road.

That includes making sure enough electric vehicle charging stations and residential chargers are available to drivers.

According to data from the California Energy Commission, the state has a total of 79,023 electric vehicle chargers. That includes both public and shared electric vehicle chargers. But research done by the California Energy Commission shows that California will need nearly 1.2 million chargers by 2030.

Dan Sperling, the Automotive Member of the California Air Resources Board, told KCRA 3 that ramping up the charging infrastructure is critical, and it is something that is constantly being done.

"We've invested money in charging stations. We've worked with local governments to accelerate the permitting of charging stations. We’ve done lots of things," Sperling said.

KCRA 3 spoke to Daniel Kukharets, an electrician with Bonney Plumbing, Electrical, Heating and Air, about the electrical vehicle chargers that the company installs at homes. Kukharets said they currently install a minimum of four electric vehicle chargers per day.

With the new ruling from the California Air Resources Board, Kukharets said they expect to get busier in the upcoming years due to the new ruling from the California Air Resources Board, but he added that he is confident Bonney will be able to meet the demand.

"We're partnered with Tesla and ClipperCreek and we keep their chargers stocked on our trucks, so we're available to do same-day installs," Kukharets said. "We constantly order stock … we keep a large amount of them at our shop."

Kukharets said Bonney's estimated prices for residential electric vehicle charges range from $850 to $3,500.