Judge finds Trump admin unlawfully froze EV infrastructure funding

SEATTLE (CN) — A coalition of states and nonprofits scored a win on Friday after a federal judge found the Trump administration unlawfully froze electric vehicle infrastructure funding.

“This case puts to the test our system of government’s emphasis on consistency, comity and continuity,” U.S. District Judge Tana Lin wrote in a 57-page opinion.

The Joe Biden appointee said the U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration, rather than working within the confines of established administrative law, instead “yanked the [National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure] formula program’s cord out of the outlet.”

The NEVI Formula Program was signed into law by former President Joe Biden in 2021 with the intent to build an interconnected network of highways with electric vehicle charging stations across the nation. It planned for multiple rounds of funding between 2022 and 2026.

When Trump took office last year, he suddenly halted the program.

In May, 17 states sued the Trump administration — naming the U.S. Department of Transportation and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the Federal Highway Administration and its administrator as defendants — arguing that it unlawfully withheld billions in congressionally approved funding. Seven nonprofits and three more states later joined the lawsuit.

In June, Lin granted the states’ motion for a preliminary injunction requiring the Federal Highway Administration to restore funding for the program, which allocated $5 billion to states to build electric vehicle charging networks across the country.

On Friday, Lin granted partial summary judgment in favor of the states and nonprofits that challenged the suspension of the program, disavowing the Trump administration’s “instantaneous and sudden cessation.”

“Such capriciousness runs counter to the Administrative Procedure Act; it is simply not how things are lawfully done,” Lin wrote.

The Trump administration framed the pause as merely a short interruption, but Lin noted that the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — the legislation Biden signed in 2021 in which Congress established the NEVI program — doesn’t authorize temporary pauses.

“The [Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act] empowers the Secretary of Transportation to do many things — but taking a hiatus from executing the law is not one of them,” Lin wrote.

Under the order, the federal defendants may not suspend or revoke funding for the plaintiff states’ electric vehicle plans or withhold any NEVI Formula Program funds tied to previously approved plans.

A spokesperson for the Washington Attorney General’s Office celebrated the order as a “resounding win for the rule of law and for smart investment in our clean energy future.”

The nonprofits likewise lauded Lin’s order.

“Today’s decision means states can build the EV charging infrastructure America needs to clean our air and keep up with the rest of the world. We’re grateful the court put a stop to the reckless chaos fomented by the Trump administration when they tried to interfere with Congress’s power of the purse,” Jan Hasselman, senior attorney with Earthjustice, said in a statement.

Meredith Connolly, Director of Strategy and Policy with Climate Solutions, credited the states for initiating the lawsuit.

“People want clean, fast and affordable ways to get around now. The Trump administration tried to bend to the fossil fuel industry but could not withhold long-promised federal funds for EV fast chargers,” Connolly said in a statement. “Up and down the West Coast, this decision means commuters, rural folks, and road trippers can now get reliable and fast EV charging every 50 miles.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Transportation said the pause in the program was to allow the Federal Highway Administration to align the program with the Trump administration’s priorities.

“The results of President Trump and Secretary Duffy’s leadership speak for themselves,” the spokesperson said. “In just five months since issuing revised NEVI guidance, Secretary Duffy was able to obligate 39% more NEVI funds than the Biden administration obligated in three years.”