Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 16, 2025 11 our Business Services group, we have guided families through the entire spectrum from business creation and growth to succession planning or liquidation strategies. Through the sweat equity and entrepreneurship of our clients, combined with our strategic planning, we have helped them achieve generational wealth and financial security. Our success over the decades has been intricately connected with the success of our valued clients, for which we are deeply thankful. rrlawpc.com info@rrlawpc.com rrlawpc (860) 278-1150 For 75 years, Reid and Riege has been dedicated to providing individual client services that encompass estate planning, settlement and trust administration services. Our firm takes pride in offering sophisticated planning and counsel to multiple generations of client families, assisting them and their future generations with planning and trust management needs to this day. Our services cater to professionals, retirees, and heirs. Working hand in hand with Pictured Left to Right: John Paul Callahan, Gina Geary, Ingi-Mai Loorand, John Ivimey, David Sullivan (CTFA), Barbara Taylor, Sydney Kislin, Katherine Mulry ESTATE PLANNING, SETTLEMENT & TRUST ADMINISTRATION SERVICES charging at the facility that we're going to be building in Orange." He said Noble Gas still plans to eventually build the EV showroom, but "it's probably part of phase two." Despite the setback, Frisbie said he is "still committed to pushing forward with the infrastructure for EV vehicles." He envisions creating Noble Gas fueling facilities that include high- speed diesel pumps and EV chargers. "I'm actually driving an EV, even though I own gas stations," he said. "So, we think the future of EV is still pretty strong. The challenge is, we were planning on using some of these subsidies as part of the investment." He noted there is still some charging-station funding available aside from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program. Eversource Energy, for example, states on its website that it offers EV charging rebates for Level 2 and DC Fast charging projects, with rebates of up to $250,000. It adds, however, that the number of rebates granted each year is limited. 'A perfect storm' Attorney Lee D. Hoffman, chairman of Hartford law firm Pullman & Comley who focuses on clients developing energy projects, said the current political and regulatory environment for electric vehicles is difficult. "You have a perfect storm of problems right now," Hoffman said. "Nothing that's insurmountable, but the federal administration froze the (National Electric Vehicle Infra- structure) funding, and it's not clear what's going to be the permanent fallout from that. We don't know if it's a temporary hiccup, or if that funding is never going to come out of the current administration." In addition to the funding freeze, the so-called "Big Beautiful Bill" making its way through Congress makes signifi- cant changes to the Biden-era EV tax credits. The bill phases out the clean vehicle credit, which allows a tax credit of up to $7,500 for consumers buying a new EV, and up to $4,000 for buying a used EV. The credits were intended to encourage consumers to buy electric vehicles. Eliminating the tax credits and freezing the funding creates uncer- tainty, Hoffman said, particularly for construction projects that generally have to order equipment and materials well in advance. "If I'm delayed in getting my financing by 60 or 90 days, it may result in 120- or 180 days'-worth of delay because of supply-chain issues," Hoffman said. "The charging equipment may get sold to somebody else who isn't waiting on NEVI funding." In addition to the dramatic federal changes, EV projects in Connecticut have been waiting to see what the state legislature would do with its resources. During the recently ended legislative session, lawmakers passed a bill, which Gov. Ned Lamont was expected to sign, that caps the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority's EV charging program expenses at $20 million per year for the two-year budget. Rep. Jonathan Steinberg (D-West- port), co-chair of the Energy & Tech- nology Committee, said during debate on the bill that the program was among several that "got haircuts, but were not decapitated." Hoffman said the spending caps are less than what has been in place previ- ously, "but it is still a significant amount of money that can be expended on this infrastructure." Frisbie said Noble Gas is a Connecticut family-owned business, and regardless of the federal or state cuts, is here to stay. "We've invested a lot of money in the state of Connecticut, and we're happy to do it," he said. "We're glad to be here." For her part, Verna said the plan is to replace the Wallingford EV station project with something else, perhaps a medical office building. But that remains to be determined. "I don't have any brilliant ideas right now," she said. "I'd love to have an EV station there, but what are you gonna do? You can't have everything." The lot at 1 Miles Dr. in Wallingford, seen across the street from the Fairfield by Marriott hotel, remains vacant a year after a major EV charging station project was approved by the town. HBJ PHOTO | DAVID KRECHEVSKY Lee Hoffman EV CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE IN CT TYPE NO. OF PORTS LEVEL 1 65 LEVEL 2 3,645 DCFC 636 TOTAL 4,347 NO. OF STATION LOCATIONS 1,445 Note: There are nearly 24,000 electric vehicles registered in the state. | Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy

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