Pinellas County, FL Parking Rules: EV Charging (2026)
Key Facts
- EVCS status
- Optional site element
- What an EVCS does
- Provides power supply to electric motor vehicles
- Once provided
- Adjacent parking shall be reserved for vehicles that can be electrically charged
- Applies to
- Unincorporated county only
- Latest ordinance listed
- Ord. No. 24-22, § 1, 7-30-24
Summary
Unincorporated Pinellas County does not require electric vehicle charging stations on any site. County Code § 138-3602(h) calls an EVCS an optional site element, and it attaches a single duty once a station is built: the adjacent parking must be reserved for vehicles that can be electrically charged.
(h)Electric vehicle charging stations:(1)An electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) is an optional site element that provides power supply to electric motor vehicles.(2)Where an EVCS is provided, the adjacent parking shall be reserved for vehicles that can be electrically charged. (Ord. No. 18-36, § 3(Att. B), 10-23-18; Ord. No. 21-11, § 85, 4-27-21; Ord. No. 23-24, § 2, 10-31-23; Ord. No. 24-22, § 1, 7-30-24)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 124).
Full Breakdown
Pinellas County Code § 138-3602(h) is short, but it both defines the charging station and sets the rule for the parking beside it.
Paragraph (1) defines an electric vehicle charging station, which the code abbreviates EVCS, as an optional site element that provides power supply to electric motor vehicles. The word optional is the key. The county Land Development Code does not make a charger a required feature of a parking area on any type of site, and that includes multifamily developments such as apartment complexes. An owner or developer in the unincorporated county decides whether to include a station at all.
Paragraph (2) is the mandatory part, and it uses the word shall. Where an EVCS is provided, the adjacent parking shall be reserved for vehicles that can be electrically charged. The trigger is the owner's own choice to provide a station. Once that choice is made, the parking next to the equipment stops being general parking.
The test written into paragraph (2) is about what the vehicle can do. The space is reserved for vehicles that can be electrically charged, so a vehicle with no ability to take an electric charge does not belong there. The subsection as quoted sets no count of chargers, no charging time limit, and no fee. It addresses only what the station is and who may use the parking beside it.
The section's history note lists Ord. No. 18-36 (10-23-18), Ord. No. 21-11 (4-27-21), Ord. No. 23-24 (10-31-23), and Ord. No. 24-22 (7-30-24).
This rule covers unincorporated Pinellas County only. Incorporated cities within the county, such as St. Petersburg and Clearwater, set their own separate rules.
Violations & Fines
No installation mandate exists to violate. Once installed, using the reserved EVCS space for a non-charging vehicle is a parking-restriction violation enforceable by county code enforcement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must apartment complexes install EV chargers in unincorporated Pinellas County?
Can a gas car park in an EV charging spot?
If I add a charger to my property in unincorporated Pinellas County, what does the county code require?
Does this rule apply in St. Petersburg or Clearwater?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pinellas County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Pinellas County to another location·View the Florida parking rules overview
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