Half Moon Bay's City EV Charging: New Rate Costs More Above 2.08 kWh per Hour

Half Moon Bay plans to replace the $1-per-hour fee at its city-operated public EV charging stations with $0.48 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) beginning November 1, 2026. The meaningful price difference depends on how much electricity a driver actually receives: at the announced base rates, an hour delivering more than about 2.08 kWh costs more under the new tariff than the old one.¹

That threshold comes from dividing the old hourly charge by the new energy price: $1.00 ÷ $0.48 = 2.0833 kWh per billed hour. A driver receiving less electricity in that billed hour would pay less under the new base tariff; a driver receiving more would pay more. This is a comparison of identical hypothetical charging time and delivered energy, not a measurement of any city charger.¹

What one billed hour would cost

Electricity delivered in one billed hour	Previous $1/hour fee	New $0.48/kWh fee	Change
1.0 kWh	$1.00	$0.48	52% less
2.0 kWh	$1.00	$0.96	4% less
3.3 kWh	$1.00	$1.58	58.4% more
6.6 kWh	$1.00	$3.17	216.8% more

Illustrative calculations from the city's two announced prices. Values in the new-fee column are rounded to cents; percentage changes use unrounded amounts. Each row assumes one identical billed hour, excludes any additional fees, taxes, idle charges or billing-rounding effects, and does not establish actual station output or a real customer's bill.¹

For example, 6.6 kWh delivered during one billed hour would cost $3.168 (about $3.17) at the new rate versus $1 under the old one. But that is a chosen scenario—not a finding that Half Moon Bay's chargers consistently deliver 6.6 kWh in an hour. A vehicle receiving less energy over the same billed time could see a smaller increase or even a lower base charge.¹

The city explains that the old hourly price was based on active charging time rather than electricity received; according to its notice, that time-based billing pauses when the vehicle's battery becomes full. The new price is based on delivered energy. Neither a charger's nameplate power nor a single assumed charging speed establishes what an individual session will cost.¹

Why the city is changing the fee

Half Moon Bay says its $1-an-hour fee dates to 2015 and no longer covers the electricity, charging-network, maintenance and related operating costs of its municipal public charging program. The City Council took the rate action on October 6, 2026, according to the city's current notice.¹

The city's analysis estimates that under existing electrical configurations, full cost recovery could require $0.74–$1.31 per kWh, depending on the location and use. Its lower $0.48/kWh tariff is based on a modeled scenario with more favorable PG&E EV electricity rates. The city is considering separate metering, service changes and utility-rate adjustments; it cautions that the new price alone may not immediately eliminate the program's operating deficit. Those are city estimates and plans, not independently audited realized costs or completed upgrades.¹

The November 1 date is the city's advertised start, not an independently verified live price for every station. The city instructs drivers to check the price displayed at the charging station or in its app before starting. The change covers city-operated public chargers only; privately operated stations can have different rates.¹

Sources

Footnotes

1. City of Half Moon Bay, “EV Public Charging,” current municipal public notice, inspected October 30, 2026. The city's stated October 6 action, planned November 1 implementation, old and new tariff units, pricing scope, and modeled cost-recovery estimates. The old-versus-new parity and scenarios above are independently calculated from its advertised prices, not observed charger or billing data. https://www.halfmoonbay.gov/1124/18156/EV-Public-Charging ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸