Don't buy into free EV chargers

Truck, truck, truck, Tesla. Truck, truck, truck.

Here in rural Eastern Washington, the running joke is that the “T” on a Tesla electric vehicle stands for “tourist.” Indeed, the expensive cars, like their electric Toyota and Rivian counterparts, are an oddity easily picked out among rural residents’ pickups, four-wheel drives and older vehicles.

But what some rural residents may not realize is that they are paying to charge many of those expensive EVs.

Over the last couple years, electric vehicle and utility companies have pushed installation of charging stations in rural communities. If you l...