By Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com
A new state law passed in 2023 requires an orange and black “EV Hybrid” sticker to be attached to the license plates on electric (EV) and hybrid vehicles. There were nearly 146,000 such vehicles on the road in 2023.
The law was enacted in order to to quickly alert first responders that a vehicle has electric components. Per wearegreenbay.com, “Chief Alan Matzke of the De Pere Fire Department says determining the type of vehicle involved in a crash is one of the first things responders do when arriving on the scene. “With regular vehicles, we can tell when they’re running or not because we can hear the engine running. One of the things that we do is stabilize the vehicle and make sure that the engine is shut off so we don’t have any surprises of that vehicle moving in case of an accident. Electric Vehicles make no noise, so we have no idea if that vehicle’s going to lunge forward or backward,” Matzke says. With the style of EVs evolving, Matzke says it is now more important than ever to start using the stickers. He says, “Certain EVs have a distinctive look, but as they progress and new models come out, they look more and more like an everyday combustion automobile. The stickers are going to be really fundamental in identifying that for us.”
Per ems.gov, in a crash, a high-voltage (HV) lithium-ion battery in a damaged EV or HEV can off-gas or ignite (what’s known as thermal runaway) rapidly with little or no warning. The gas and smoke emitted when the battery is off-gassing or burning is not just flammable but highly toxic. Battery fires also burn much hotter (3000+ degrees) than those in an ICE vehicle, which burn at about 800 to 1000 degrees.
Several other states are either mandating a special EV plate or sticker, while others are making this optional, which sometimes allows a vehicle to use HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lanes. Illinois is among the states with a special plate. The Wisconsin legislature considered issuing a plate but opted instead for a sticker, which initially was proposed to cost drivers $1.
All current owners of electric or hybrid vehicles with valid registration will automatically be sent their EV Hybrid sticker(s) and should receive their sticker(s) by June. Starting this summer, those who apply for title and registration for a new electric or hybrid vehicle (including those purchased at a dealership) will be provided a sticker(s) with their new plate(s). Anyone who purchases an electric or hybrid vehicle ahead of that time will receive their sticker by mail. There is no need to contact the DMV for EV Hybrid stickers.
By the way, there is a $75 annual surcharge for the registration of a hybrid car, and effective July 6, 2023 the surcharge for registering an EV increased from $100 to $175. The intent of these surcharges is to compensate for not collecting the 30.9 cents per gallon state gas excise tax that helps to pay for road improvements.
