"Trump froze funding for the Biden-era initiative, but, after court battles, some states continue to use the money."
"Recalling the optimism that surrounded the launch of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program is bewildering, even though it happened just five years ago.
The $5 billion initiative was part of the Biden administration’s goal of having 500,000 public EV charging ports by 2030. Pete Buttigieg, Biden’s transportation secretary, said NEVI would “help us win the EV race.”
And then things went sideways. First, the Biden administration took a long time to write the program’s rules and had barely started disbursing money by the time President Donald Trump took office. Then, Trump froze the funding and has been defending the decision in court ever since.
It would be reasonable to assume that NEVI hasn’t done much. But a report issued this week by the Sierra Club tells a different story. Despite many obstacles, the program increased its reach and accomplishments in 2025, with states spending $94 million on projects. That’s more than double the $44 million spent in 2024. This translates to hundreds of charging ports, with agreements to deploy thousands more."
