Judge rules USDOT illegally withheld funds for EV charging infrastructure

In a multi-state lawsuit co-led by Washington, California, and Colorado, a federal judge issued a final ruling that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) illegally withheld about $1 billion in funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program from 20 states and the District of Columbia.

“All across the state, Washingtonians are embracing clean energy and switching to electric vehicles, and they need a robust network of charging stations,” Attorney General Nick Brown said. “That’s why my team and I have fought so hard to make sure the federal government follows the law and provides the funding that Congress intended.”

In the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Congress appropriated $5 billion for the NEVI Formula Program to facilitate nationwide deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure and improve charging reliability for the public. States developed and were carrying out plans to build that network when President Trump, on day one of his administration, issued an executive order directing federal agencies to immediately stop releasing NEVI funds. Following that directive, DOT abruptly halted the NEVI program. A coalition of states led by the attorneys general of Washington, California, and Colorado sued in May and won a preliminary injunction from U.S. District Court Judge Tana Lin in June. Seven environmental non-profit organizations also joined the litigation.

Now, in her summary judgment order, Judge Lin said DOT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) acted outside the law and their actions were arbitrary and capricious. She barred DOT and FHWA from suspending or revoking the plaintiff states’ approved electric vehicle infrastructure plans in the future and from withholding their NEVI Formula Program funds for any reason not expressly authorized by Congress in the IIJA.

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

In addition to Brown, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, the attorneys general of Arizona, Delaware, Hawai‘i, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania joined the case.

Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Climate Solutions, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, CleanAIRE NC, West End Revitalization Association, and Plug In America also joined as plaintiff-intervenors.

A copy of the summary judgment order is available here.

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