Junkie Garage: Electricity equipment costs are high when introducing EVs
Most homes have charging outlets, but some don’t have space to park your car.
- Congress is considering a bill that would eliminate $879 million in funding for electric vehicle chargers.
- The fund was originally part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, signed into law by former President Joe Biden.
- The Trump administration previously tried to suspend the program, but was blocked by a federal court.
Congress is considering a bill that would eliminate $879 million earmarked for electric vehicle chargers, which EV advocates say would make matters worse for drivers already worried about range.
Republican leaders on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee say the Charger money, originally included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 signed by former President Joe Biden, is part of $2.3 billion in “Democratic waste priorities” that will be redirected to other priorities.
Biden administration-era EV charger funding has been at the center of a legal battle since the second Trump administration took office in January 2025. The Trump administration initially sought to unilaterally eliminate the funding, but a court ordered the U.S. Department of Transportation to proceed with the use of previously appropriated funds.
What does the elimination of charger fees mean for EV drivers?
For years, car buyers have told pollsters that they have major concerns about electric car 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 2025 EV buyers said their biggest concern about plug-in models is that the charger network is unreliable, according to a new poll released Monday by the EVs for All America group, an advocacy group that works with automakers to push U.S. and state legislatures to adopt EV-friendly policies.
According to the same poll, 65% of respondents said they would like to charge their phone for 7-8 hours at home to get a full charge, but only 29% said they would choose a 30-minute charge in a public facility to reach 80% battery life.
Funding for a national electric vehicle infrastructure plan included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021, currently under consideration, was supposed to help solve this problem. The legislation includes $5 billion in funding to states to boost America’s charging infrastructure, which is scheduled to be scaled back 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 privileged areas.
The funding was hailed at the time as a game-changer for the Biden administration’s efforts to build a nationwide network of chargers along federal highways as it seeks to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the United States.
In an August 2024 press release issued under the Biden administration, the U.S. Department of Transportation said the number of publicly available EV chargers doubled under the previous administration.
DOT said at the time that there are “more than 192,000 publicly available charging ports and approximately 1,000 new public chargers are being added every week.”
If money for chargers disappears, will it be difficult to popularize EVs?
Charger money, along with the $7,500 tax credit for EV car buyers that was eliminated last year, have been a longtime target of President 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.
Automakers sold more than 1.2 million electric vehicles in 2025, despite major headwinds such as the disappearance of the federal tax credit for plug-in models and tariffs on imported cars and parts.
Automakers sold 1,275,714 electric vehicles in 2025, enough to account for nearly 8% of total U.S. vehicle sales that year, according to new data released by Cox Automotive on Tuesday, January 13th. However, industry-wide EV sales also fell 2% from the 1,301,441 electric vehicles automakers sold in 2024.
Cox said overall 2025 EV sales were inflated by a rush among car buyers to buy electric models in the third quarter of 2025, before the popular $7,500 tax credit expired. Automakers sold 365,830 EVs in the third quarter, compared to just 234,171 in the fourth quarter.
What people are saying about potential charger funding cuts
Republican leaders say any moves to promote plug-in cars during the Biden administration amount to the “EV mandate” that President Trump promised to eliminate on his first day in office.
Once under President Trump’s administration, the Federal Highway Administration suspended the program in February 2025 as one of several actions President Donald Trump directed to end federal support for widespread 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.
Congress is currently working to codify the repeal of EV charger funding in a new funding bill for the Department of Transportation and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The environmental group Sierra Club countered that the move to eliminate federal charger subsidies would jeopardize efforts to build a promised nationwide charger network that EV makers say they desperately need to persuade more Americans to consider buying plug-in models.
“Americans should not be punished for the Trump administration’s efforts to rob states of reliable electric vehicle charging that benefits our wallets, our air, and our climate,” Sierra Club Clean Transportation for All Director Katherine Garcia said in a statement.
“We urge lawmakers to leave this funding alone,” Garcia continued. “States must have access to the full amount of funding they are promised and rely on as they work to build essential infrastructure for their communities.”
