Charles County, MD Parking Rules: EV Charging (2026)

Charles County folds electric-vehicle infrastructure into its residential energy code rather than a stand-alone ordinance. Under Chapter 224, Building Construction, the county adopted the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) in its entirety on May 14, 2024, by Bill No. 4 to it. That section requires that single-family detached houses, duplexes, and townhome units with a separate garage, carport, or driveway include not less than one electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) installed parking space capable of at least Level 2 charging, or one electric-vehicle-ready parking space in or on the garage, carport, or driveway.

The county also inserted new definitions into IECC Section R202: an EVSE-installed parking space runs wiring fully from the electrical panel to the parking space, while an electric-vehicle-ready parking space needs only the panel capacity and a full circuit, minimum 40-ampere, 208/240-volt, with raceway wiring, a NEMA 14-50R receptacle, and overcurrent protection, so a homeowner can add EVSE later without opening walls. Level 2 charging is defined as a minimum 208-volt alternating-current circuit meeting applicable industry safety standards. Compliance is checked at the plan-review and inspection stage by the Building Code Official, the title the amended codes use in place of 'Building Official' or 'Code Official' under § 224-1(3).

Because the requirement lives inside the adopted IECC rather than the zoning or subdivision chapters, it applies countywide to unincorporated Charles County new construction covered by the county's building permit process; it does not reach existing housing stock, since there is no retrofit mandate in the text.