One White House attack on clean energy is generating serious legal pushback: a freeze on billions of federal dollars meant to create a network of electric vehicle charging stations.
First, in June, a judge ordered the Department of Transportation to resume funding the program for 14 states that had sued to get the money unfrozen. Last month, the judge admitted a herd of new plaintiffs, making it more likely that the program will resume nationwide.
At issue is the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program, a $5 billion item in the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law. The Biden administration intended it to build a safety net of high-powered charging stations along the nation’s highways. It’s gone sluggishly: Only 100 of the thousands of needed stations are now operating.
NEVI has been a target of President Donald Trump since well before he reentered the White House. He campaigned on it as a monumental waste of money, and tagged it for elimination in his Inauguration Day “Unleashing American Energy” executive order. A few weeks later, DOT froze NEVI spending, promising to restart it after issuing new guidance. (The suspension of congressionally approved funding was illegal, the Government Accountability Office said in May.)
