President Trump cancels Biden administration-era nationwide EV charger project
A $7.5 billion Biden administration plan to build a national network of electric vehicle chargers was derailed after the Trump administration froze funding.
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- The number of public EV chargers increased in the third quarter of 2025 as consumers rushed to purchase before tax credits expired.
- Compared to 2024, DC fast chargers have increased by 32% and Level 2 chargers have increased by 17%.
- Despite growth, recent polls show that 20% of potential EV buyers are concerned about unreliable charging networks.
The number of public chargers in various states increased in the third quarter of 2025 as consumers rushed to purchase electric vehicles before last year’s $7,500 U.S. tax credit for plug-in and hybrid models expired, according to new data released by the Automotive Innovation Alliance on February 2.
The alliance, which lobbies in Washington for nearly every major automaker, including General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen, said in its quarterly Get Connected report that public Level 2 chargers, which are more powerful than most home chargers, increased by 17% in 2024, and the number of DC fast chargers, the most powerful chargers, increased by 32%. The group said the total number of charging ports has increased by 21% since the end of 2024.
The findings come as electric vehicles will account for 10.6% of U.S. auto sales through the first three quarters of 2025, an increase of 0.6%, according to the Alliance.
With all of this in mind, the USA TODAY Cars team looked at the states that had the most EV chargers in the third quarter of last year.
Which states have the most EV chargers?
According to the Auto Alliance, the following states have the highest number of their own public EV charging locations:
- California: 10,039
- New York: 3,771
- Florida: 3,138
- Texas: 2,923
- Massachusetts: 2,215
What does the increase in the number of chargers mean for EV drivers?
For years, car buyers have told pollsters that they have major concerns about electric vehicle battery life. This concern comes up so often that it’s called “range anxiety.”
Twenty percent of 600 respondents to a poll aimed at surveying potential EV buyers in 2025 said their biggest concern about plug-in models was that the charger network was unreliable, according to a new poll released Jan. 12 by the group EVs for All America, an advocacy group that works with automakers to push U.S. and state legislatures to adopt EV-friendly policies.
According to the same survey, 65% of respondents said they would charge at home for 7-8 hours to fully charge their battery, but only 29% would choose a 30-minute charge in a public facility to reach 80% battery life.
What’s going on with the federal charger money?
The bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021, passed by Congress and signed by former President Joe Biden, includes $5 billion in funding to states to shore up America’s charging infrastructure, which is scheduled to shrink in 2026. The legislation also includes an additional $2.5 billion set aside in competitive grants that will allow states to build chargers in alternative fuel corridors and disadvantaged areas.
Charger funding, along with a $7,500 tax credit for EV car buyers that was eliminated last year, have long been a target of President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress. Since the $7,500 tax credit was phased out in September 2025, EV sales in the U.S. have declined significantly.
Republican leaders in Washington said all efforts to promote plug-in cars during the Biden administration amounted to the “EV mandate” that President Trump promised to abolish on the first day of his second term.
After the NEVI charger program came under President Trump’s administration, the Federal Highway Administration suspended the NEVI charger program in February 2025, one of several actions President Trump directed to end federal support for increased consumer adoption of EVs. In June 2025, a federal court blocked the suspension, saying the Department of Transportation’s actions exceeded its authority and sought to override the will of Congress.
DOT reinstated the charger subsidy program in August 2025 with new provisions to address President Trump’s concerns about diversity measures to ensure EV chargers are available to disadvantaged communities and Biden’s efforts to promote the use of labor unions in installations.
