Can a Michigan HOA restrict an EV charger?

What the rule says

Since April 2, 2025, Michigan's Homeowners' Energy Policy Act (2024 PA 68,
codified at MCL 559.303–559.313) protects EV chargers in homeowners' association
communities. The act defines "electric vehicle supply equipment" as a machine or
other device supplied with electricity that is designed or used to place or deliver
electricity into the battery storage system of a motor vehicle, and it expressly
lists electric vehicle supply equipment among the "energy-saving improvement or
modification" items the act protects (MCL 559.303(b), (c)(ix)).

Under MCL 559.305(1), any of the following in a homeowners' association agreement is
invalid and unenforceable as contrary to public policy:

• a provision that prohibits, or requires the approval of the association for, a
  member to replace, maintain, install, or operate an energy-saving improvement or
  modification; and
• a provision that compels, or requires association approval for, a member to make
  auxiliary changes needed for the installation of an energy-saving improvement or
  modification.

Because EV supply equipment is an energy-saving improvement under the act, an HOA
agreement provision that bans a charger outright — or that says the board must
approve it first — is generally void. The act also says a local unit of government
may not require a member to obtain association approval for an energy-saving
improvement (MCL 559.305(2)).

A member whose association violates the act may bring a civil action for damages,
and a prevailing member may recover reasonable attorney fees and the costs of the
action (MCL 559.315).

Which authority controls

The act is state law enacted by the Michigan Legislature and codified in the
Michigan Compiled Laws, so it sits above association governing documents. The
Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is the state's
energy agency and hosts the state's energy information for homeowners. The act does
not replace local building departments: electrical work on a charger generally still
needs a local permit, inspection, and any utility service coordination, and those
authorities act independently of the association.

What may still be required or restricted

The act is not a blank check. It is limited in several ways that matter in practice:

• Common areas and shared roofs are excluded. The act does not apply to the
  replacement, maintenance, installation, or operation of an energy-saving
  improvement in a common area or on a shared roof (MCL 559.313). "Common area"
  includes association-owned or association-managed garages and parking amenities
  (MCL 559.303(a)). If your charger would sit in shared or association-owned
  parking, the act does not protect the installation, and the governing documents
  and local law control instead.
• Local requirements survive. The act does not stop a local unit of government
  from imposing its own requirements, which may prohibit or limit an installation
  (MCL 559.305(3)). Local zoning, electrical codes, and permit rules still apply.
• The act protects the installation, not everything around it. The void
  provisions target prohibitions and approval requirements. Generally applicable
  rules that do not single out or block the charger — for example, safety,
  maintenance, parking, or insurance rules that apply to equipment generally — are
  not addressed by the act, and their enforceability depends on the specific rule.
• No statutory decision clock for chargers. The act's written-application
  process and 30-day approval clock apply only to solar energy systems, and its
  detailed "reasonable restriction" standards are part of the solar policy
  provisions. There is no equivalent EV-charger application process in the act, so
  the act's protection for chargers is the voiding of bans and approval
  requirements, not a timeline.
• No separate EV-charging statute was identified. A search of the Michigan
  Compiled Laws for "electric vehicle supply equipment" surfaces the act's
  definition at MCL 559.303 as the only Chapter 559 provision on point; no separate
  Michigan statute specifically governing EV chargers in HOAs was identified in the
  official sources reviewed as of August 16, 2026.

Facts that could change the answer

• Where the charger goes. In your own garage or unit, the act usually applies.
  In a common area or on a shared roof, it does not (MCL 559.313).
• What the provision says. A flat ban or an approval requirement is what the act
  voids. A generally applicable rule about parking, safety, or maintenance may still
  be enforceable if it does not operate as a prohibition.
• What local law requires. A city, township, or village requirement can still
  limit the installation (MCL 559.305(3)).
• Whether the association is a "homeowners' association" under the act's text.
  The act speaks of provisions "in a homeowners' association agreement," so the
  specific governing document and association structure matter; the act has not been
  broadly interpreted by the courts in the official sources reviewed.
• Electrical reality. Permits, panel capacity, and utility service rules are
  independent of the act and can affect whether and how a charger is installed.

Practical decision path

1. Read the governing documents and any rules about vehicles, parking, electrical
   work, or energy improvements, and ask the board in writing which provisions it
   says apply.
2. Determine whether the charger will be on your own property (usually protected)
   or in a common area or shared roof (not covered by the act).
3. Get the local building or electrical permit and follow inspection requirements;
   coordinate panel or service upgrades with a licensed electrician and, if needed,
   your utility.
4. Put the installation in writing to the association with the proposed equipment,
   location, and installer, and keep proof of delivery even if no approval is
   required.
5. If the association blocks the installation or fines you, ask it to cite the exact
   provision and explain its basis in writing, and keep the record.
6. If the dispute continues, consider an attorney familiar with Michigan
   common-interest-community law before starting work over an objection or filing a
   civil action.

Records to keep

Keep the governing documents, the written notice or application to the association,
proof of delivery, every response or rule cited, the permit and inspection records,
the installer's contract and invoice, the equipment specification sheet, and any
utility paperwork. If the association denies or penalizes the installation, preserve
the denial letter or fine notice and the timeline of events — those are the core of
any claim under the act, where a prevailing member can recover damages plus
reasonable attorney fees and costs (MCL 559.315).

When professional advice may help

The act is new — it took effect
April 2, 2025 — and its scope, including which associations and which rules it
covers, has not been settled by the courts in the official sources reviewed. An
attorney familiar with Michigan community-association law can help you read your
specific governing documents and decide how to respond if the association objects.
Before work begins, obtain the written requirement from the association, landlord, permit office, or serving utility and keep the record.