As Ford Authority reported earlier this year, one of the tasks on the agenda of President Donald Trump and his administration was to end the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program created by his predecessor, Joe Biden. That program aimed to spend $5 billion on the installation of new EV chargers across the U.S., but the Department of Transportation (DOT) ordered states to halt that process as a result. Some questioned the legality of this move – including the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) – and now, it has been struck down, at least, temporarily and only in certain states.
According to Reuters, Seattle-based U.S. District Judge Tana Lin has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold funds previously awarded to 14 states for EV charging infrastructure upgrades, a decision made under the assumption that those states would prevail in a lawsuit that alleges such a move is in fact illegal. The ruling doesn’t apply to all states involved, however, as it excludes District of Columbia, Minnesota and Vermont, which didn’t provide evidence that each would suffer immediate harm from the withholding of funds.
Lin did rule that other states – including California and New York – are harmed by Trump’s shift in policy as each had already dedicated their own resources to the erection of additional EV chargers, all under the expectation that each would be receiving funds from the federal government to support that expansion. The Trump administration now has seven days to appeal this decision – before the ruling takes effect – and it can also ask an appellate court to block the decision as well. The White House has yet to comment on the matter, however.
As Ford Authority previously reported, the Ford-backed lobby group Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) has asked the Trump administration to revive NEVI on the belief that “investments in charging and refueling stations are creating jobs and expanding consumers’ transportation choices in every state.”
Comments
The oil industry’s $1B bribe claims another “Win”.
Why should taxpayers be responsible for funding locations to recharge your electric car? If the same was currently being done to construct a network of gas stations, you’d be on the side of the road protesting.
Good. If tax payers were funding a network of gas stations, EV owners would be on the side of the streets crying and protesting.