A program to aid in the buildout of thousands of high-speed electric vehicle (EV) chargers on major roadways across the country has been halted by federal transportation officials.
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) suspended funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program until federal officials issue new guidance for NEVI “to align with current U.S. [Department of Transportation] DOT policy and priorities,” according to a memo sent Thursday to state transportation directors.
“The FHWA aims to have updated draft NEVI Formula Guidance published for public comment in the spring,” the memo reads.
The NEVI program was created by the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021 and includes some $7.5 billion in funding for the buildout of public EV charging. Around $5 billion of this money was allocated toward the development of placing about 500,000 high-speed charging ports along major corridors, with each state submitting plans to this effect. Roughly $2.4 billion was allocated to states for fiscal years 2022, 2023 and 2024 of the NEVI program.
“We are utilizing the unique authority afforded under the NEVI Formula Program to ensure the program operates efficiently and effectively and aligns with current U.S. DOT policies and priorities,” an FHWA spokesperson said Friday via email. “During this process, no new obligations may occur under the program, but reimbursement of existing obligations will continue in order to not disrupt current financial commitments.”
To date, 47 states have received approval on their third state plan, to tap an additional $726 million for FY 2025 funding. The DOT memo states it is suspending approval of all plans for all fiscal years until new guidance is developed and all states’ plans are reapproved.
“In concert with [President Donald] Trump’s efforts to cast uncertainty over all federal clean energy grants, DOT seems to be trying to nullify the NEVI program by delay, freezing the program for an unnecessary rewrite of final guidance, and forcing all 50 states, D.C., and Puerto Rico to rewrite their plans,” Katherine García, director of the Sierra Club Clean Transportation for All Campaign, said in an emailed statement. “The federal government would be forcing states to do a mountain of homework they’ve already done.”
Forth Mobility, an electric vehicle advocacy and policy group based in Oregon, characterized the move by FHWA as an attempt to “cause delay, confusion and chaos,” said Jeff Allen, executive director of Forth Mobility.
“It’s as if they said, ‘We’re not sure what the speed limit on freeways should be, so nobody can drive on them until we make up our minds,’” Allen said via email, adding the move is really just “an attempt to prevent states from spending money that has already been provided to them based on approved plans and standards, unless those funds are already being spent on contracts with charging companies.”
Approval of funding does not necessarily mean the money has been dispersed. Only about $500 million of the $5 billion allotted for NEVI had been dispersed as of October, said Corey Harper, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering, who has conducted research into the NEVI program. Harper is one of the authors of the report Finding gaps in the national electric vehicle charging station coverage of the United States, published in the journal Nature Communications.
“This directive severely affects the future development of the 500,000 fast chargers planned to be deployed through the NEVI program,” Harper said in an email. “Several states such as Florida, North Dakota, and Louisiana have not had funding awarded as yet, meaning that we could see delays in charger buildout in these areas.”
The Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) urged the Trump administration to rethink this move to slow down the deployment of EV charging, saying jobs are on the line.
“We urge the administration to quickly resume the critical work of the program and minimize uncertainty for states and their businesses, who have invested in infrastructure to serve local and national goals for advanced transportation,” Genevieve Cullen, EDTA president, said in a statement.
The action by the Federal Highway Administration follows an executive order and a memo halting disbursement of some $3 trillion in domestic grants — a move that has been paused by the federal courts.