COLUMBUS, Ohio – In late April, Ohio regulators okayed a new electric rate plan for American Electric Power Co. Inc. Tucked into that agreement is a $9.5 million rebate program to add 300 Level 2 charging stations and 75 DC fast-charging stations, according to the Ohio Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association (OPMCA). The association has partnered with national groups to level the playing field for fuel retailers.

“We see this as a landmark program,” said David Schatz of ChargePoint Inc., which wasn’t directly involved with the case. “It really is to us a template that many other states should be following.”

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) said the utility wouldn’t own the charging stations, but instead would receive a 5% fee for running the rebate program. Charging stations will be in publicly accessible areas, such as workplaces and multifamily dwellings, as well as in low-income areas.

Across the country, numerous state public utilities commissions have been handing utilities competitive advantages over fuel retailers and others in the private sector in regard to electric charging stations. These types of agreements allows electric utilities to enter the charging market with very little or zero costs, which fuel retailers can’t do.

OPMCA sees this as an emerging trend in Ohio and other parts of the country, one which needs to be addressed on both state and national levels. State association executives have created an industry taskforce to address this issue.