Transportation Department suspends $5 billion EV charger program

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on Thursday announced the suspension of a Biden-era electric vehicle (EV) charging network, the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration to gut its predecessors’ energy and environmental moves.

In an FHWA letter to state transportation directors, the administration said the Department of Transportation (DOT) is rescinding all guidance related to the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program and updating the guidance to “align with current U.S. DOT policy and priorities.”

The FHWA said new guidance will be published for public comment in the spring but that “no new obligations may occur” under the existing program.

The $5 billion NEVI program was funded by already-allocated and approved Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds, with a goal of filling holes in EV charging infrastructure around the country. More than $3 billion has already been disbursed to states under the program.

The suspension marks the latest Trump administration move to freeze funds already approved by Congress, which Democratic lawmakers have repeatedly pointed out is forbidden under the 1974 Impoundment Control Act.

Newly confirmed White House budget director Russell Vought said during his confirmation hearing that he believes the law to be unconstitutional.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) similarly issued a freeze on disbursement of climate and EV-related funds from the Inflation Reduction Act during Trump’s first week in office. Both the EPA and the Justice Department also made moves to shut down their offices of environmental justice this week.

The Sierra Club blasted the announcement in a statement Friday morning.

“Freezing these EV charging funds is yet another one of the Trump administration’s unsound and illegal moves. This is an attack on bipartisan funding that Congress approved years ago and is driving investment and innovation in every state, with Texas as the largest beneficiary,” Sierra Club Clean Transportation for All Director Katherine García said in a statement. “Throwing out states’ plans, which were carefully built together with business, utilities, and communities, only hurts America’s growing clean energy economy.”

Updated on Feb. 10 at 8:54 a.m. EST