Florida is at a pivotal moment.

Our state now has over 400,000 registered electric vehicles (EVs), the second-highest in the country and consumer demand for clean transportation continues to grow, driving a critical need for charging infrastructure, especially in rural areas and evacuation zones. Unfortunately, proposed efficiency audits threaten to stall progress, discarding millions in federal grant funds while pushing rural communities further behind and exposing them to continued soaring gasoline prices.

Over the last six years, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican Legislature have focused on striking a balance to make sure Florida is ready to embrace the future while ensuring fiscal conservancy. The Florida Department of Transportation’s (FDOT) recent study cited that for every dollar invested in transportation the state generates a return of $4.40.

Recognizing that EV adoption continues to accelerate with 1 in 10 new vehicles sold in Florida in Q4 2024 being electric, FDOT created the state’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan in 2021. However, despite ranking second in the nation for registered EVs, Florida’s charging infrastructure isn’t keeping pace, with rural regions lagging the most and critical gaps in coverage still remaining.

Last year, Florida spent time and money deploying temporary mobile EV charging stations along Interstate 75 and Interstate 4 during Hurricane Milton to meet the demands of residents along evacuation corridors and in rural areas. After both Hurricane Milton and Helene, Florida’s EV stationary charging stations were up and running swiftly, while gas stations struggled for weeks with long lines and inadequate fuel supplies.

Investing in permanent EV charging infrastructure along evacuation routes and in rural areas would cut costs, improve efficiency, and increase resilience — helping Floridians before, during and after disasters.

Rural communities from Immokalee to the Panhandle continue to wait as new and unnecessary bureaucratic barriers slow funding distribution and create uncertainty. With rural drivers spending 30% more on transportation annually than urban drivers and with limited public transit options, reliable EV infrastructure will be crucial to reducing costs and meeting their community’s needs.

Creating new barriers and task forces isn’t just red tape — it prevents rural Floridians from saving over $10,500 on the lifetime of their EV purchase, savings they’ll miss without access to charging stations.

Investing now in future-ready infrastructure is not only efficient, it’s essential to keep Florida ahead of the curve. Our state’s leaders have long championed cost-effective, market-driven solutions that reduce government waste while delivering real savings to everyday Floridians.

The transition to electric vehicles presents an opportunity to uphold those values — reducing transportation costs, increasing fuel independence and making rural communities more resilient — regardless of your ZIP code. By funding mobility solutions today, we ensure Florida is prepared for tomorrow’s transportation needs, reducing long-term costs and positioning the state as a leader in sustainable innovation.

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Ali DySard is a senior policy and program specialist with the Environmental Defense Fund.

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Lake County Republican Party activists claimed last week they had needed signatures to force a meeting to install new members. But Lake County Republican Party Chair Taylor Yarkosky now says many names wrongly appeared on a petition, and no meeting will occur before April.

“Over the past week multiple LCREC (Lake County Republican Executive Committee) members reached out stating their names were fraudulently added to a petition calling for a special meeting in March without their consent,” Yarkosky wrote in an email blast. “Let me be absolutely clear — this is a serious violation of election integrity and it will not be tolerated.”

But Lake County Commissioner Anthony Sabatini, a former Lake County Republican Party Chair, said that’s a mischaracterization.

“66 members asked to have their names listed; 2 later rescinded after they had travel plans,” Sabatini said. On social media, he said it did not matter if individuals later wanted their names taken off a petition after the fact.

“Although a member is at liberty to later remove their names, the decision to remove their names does not cancel a duly called REC meeting, according to RPOF rules or the county model constitution,” Sabatini posted on Facebook.

Yarkosky, though, said this wasn’t just a matter of people wanting names off a petition they signed, but of names appearing on the petition without permission in the first place. He told Florida Politics that at least 10 people whose names were listed on the petition have reached out to him and said they did not sign it.

“Some members reported not even being contacted before their signatures were added,” Yarkosky wrote. “Fraudulent misrepresentation of member signatures is a direct attack on the integrity of our organization, and we will pursue every available remedy to ensure accountability.”

He referred the issue to the party’s attorneys, and wants law enforcement to take further action. Yarkosky encouraged anyone who believes their name was fraudulently added to the petition to contact the party.

“We are not backing down on this,” he told Florida Politics. “He (Sabatini) is out of control and unhinged, bullying and hurting people at all costs.”

Yarkosky also encouraged party members to report any emails received by Sabatini or ally Tom Vail to the REC.

“Your voice matters and we will not stand by while deceptive tactics are used to undermine the LCREC,” he wrote in his email blast. “We will not allow fraudulent activity to go unchecked. Integrity, transparency, and accountability are not negotiable in our party.”

Sabatini, meanwhile, said the email blast from Yarkosky was a “false and defamatory email.”

Yarkosky said no meeting of the REC will take place until April 21, when the county party will host Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, a former Republican Party of Florida Chair.

Importantly, Yarkosky serves in the House, and the Legislature is currently in Session. The Clermont Republican is a member of the House Student Academic Success Subcommittee, which is scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon in Tallahassee.

Sabatini opposed Yarkosky’s election as county REC Chair, and argued the lawmaker’s victory only came because new members had recently been qualified for precinct committee spots ahead of the vote. Sabatini said on Facebook he expects a meeting to take place Wednesday regardless, with the purpose of admitting new members into vacancies.

“The current chairman, 3x arrestee Yarkosky, and several board members have been BLOCKING new members, and so a special meeting had to be called in order to accept the 35+ new applicants,” Sabatini wrote on Facebook.

Yarkosky said any new members will be sworn in at the April meeting, and that holding a meeting in March is neither required nor productive.

Sabatini has criticized Yarkosky over bounced checks allegedly written by his Advanced Plumbing Technology business. The business sent money to cover the checks after a recent Action 9 investigation. Yarkosky said the issue with the bounced checks involved the closing of a bank account for a business, and the matter was quickly resolved when it came to his attention.

“Over the last 20 years, I have serviced upwards of tens of thousands of residential customers whether in sinkhole stabilization, different contracting work done as well as a robust piping rehabilitation business we have built,” he said.

“This had to do with a company that no longer does residential work. The operating account was shut down. When I learned about this, I contacted someone on the administrative side and the customer was wired the money within a couple days.”

Yarkosky said the disparagement of his business and character at this point is typical from Sabatini, and said the party needs to drive the far-right figure from local politics.

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