Trump's Assault on EV Charging Recently Endured a Significant Setback | Carscoops

      After a delay, funding for new electric vehicle chargers is expected to resume next month.

      June 25, 2025, at 20:30

      by Michael Gauthier

      Several states have succeeded in a legal challenge against the Trump administration regarding funding for EV chargers.

      Congress allocated billions of dollars for this initiative, but the funding was put on hold earlier this year.

      A preliminary injunction may take effect next month, although the federal government could potentially appeal.

      The Trump administration has faced another setback, this time from a U.S. District Judge in Washington, who ordered the government to disburse billions for new electric vehicle charging stations.

      In an extensive ruling, which began with a nod to a Simpsons episode, the judge mentioned that Congress had allocated $5 billion for a National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program aimed at “strategically deploying electric vehicle charging infrastructure and creating an interconnected network to enhance data collection, access, and reliability.”

      Despite the ruling, several states contended that the Trump administration and the Secretary of Transportation chose to “ignore Congress’s mandate.”

      More: Trump Administration Suspends EV Charger Funding

      As part of this initiative, the Federal Highway Administration withdrew its administrative guidance on the program, canceled state deployment plans, and halted funding distribution. Sixteen states along with the District of Columbia protested, arguing that Congress had approved the program during the Biden administration.

      They claimed this action “represented an unlawful seizure of legislative authority under the separation-of-powers principle enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and an inappropriate overreach of executive authority beyond legal limits.”

      While that summarizes the argument, Judge Tana Lin ruled in favor of Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin. Consequently, she issued a preliminary injunction preventing the government from suspending or revoking any previously approved electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plans from these states.

      The government also cannot withhold previously approved funding. However, the injunction has been stayed and will not be enforced until July 2. If the government opts to appeal, the injunction will not come into effect.

      The next steps remain uncertain, but ABC News reported that the Trump administration claimed the program was merely paused until new guidance was established. Regardless, the ongoing delays and legal disputes are likely to continue hindering the expansion of the charging network across the country.