(The Feb 18 portion of this meeting was the first part of a two-part meeting. CHBA did not participate during the second part which took place on Feb 20, 2026)

A Working Group (WG) reported on their work regarding locations for EV charging. The report covered the development of a database on EV fire incidents and discussion on whether a defined term is required. 

The Task Group Chair confirmed that the WG's mandate was on EV charging only, but that information on EV fires was of interest to the TG to understand the risk. Industry comments emphasized that EV chargers should not be restricted to the first parking levels only and that emphasis should instead be placed on detection and fire suppression. Fire chiefs brought up concerns that installation was not always done by competent professionals, to which industry responded that electrical safety is addressed in the Electrical Code and that EV charging installations were subject to permits and inspections in all jurisdictions. 

CHBA's Code Change Request (CCR) 2057 which suggested transferring energy storage system (ESS) requirements from the Electrical Code into the National Building Code has now been transformed into Proposed Change Form (PCF) 2162. The TG discussions reached consensus to continue allowing garages as an acceptable location for ESS (without the need for a dedicated room), with possible discussion needed on smoke versus heat detectors in garages.  

CHBA cautioned against complete location prohibitions (for example basements), as excluding these locations would in turn exclude many housing forms from installing ESS (e.g. row houses, without garages and large backyards), particularly given that utilities and governments may wish to incentivize ESS in homes.

For the agenda documents, see the PDF link provided below.

For additional information please contact Frank Lohmann