Last month, the Trump administration allowed the NEVI program to continue flowing into states across America. Known as the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Package, NEVI has allotted $5 billion dollars to build fast EV Charging Stations. Here’s the latest on how it’s going.
The Department of Transportation paused the NEVI program (opens in a new tab) in February to review the policy but after holding up the funding for months, the Trump administration decided to let the funds flow again.
Now the DOT has issued new, revised guidance that gives states a path so they can apply for funding again. Updated guidance hopes to illuminate the red tape that was preventing the rollout of charging infrastructure before.
“Our revised NEVI guidance slashes red tape and makes it easier for states to efficiently build out this infrastructure,” says U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. “While I don’t agree with subsidizing green energy, we will respect Congress's will and make sure this program uses federal resources efficiently.”
New to EVs and wondering how charging actually works? Start here with our simple guide: Overview of Electric Car Charging
There are many changes to the plan. The new guidelines minimize the content for regulatory requirements and simplifies the approval process. It now loses requirements that states must address emergency evacuation plans, strategies for extreme weather, environmental siting, terrain challenges, and consumer protections.
Originally, each state was expected to build a DC charging station every 50 miles along it’s travel corridors. Now, states can decide how far apart each federally funded fast charging station should be on their highways to meet the appropriate need of travelers. States can also now direct charging projects away from major highways as needed.
NEVI assigns free money to states in order to build charging infrastructure and will give your state 80 percent of installation costs. The state puts up 20 percent, and the feds handle the rest.
Originally, the roll out was slow but now over nearly 400 NEVI sites are activated and live and more are being built every day. In fact, over 4,000 stations have been funded so far and each charging station is required to have at least four charging ports.
NEVI is targeting 500,000 new fast charging ports to be built by 2026. Projections suggest robust growth in creating new EV charging stations across America and that by the end of 2025, we will see a record year for DC fast charger deployment across the country.
In the past, many people have shied away from EV adoption due to a lack of charging infrastructure across the country. But that is changing quickly.
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AnnouncementsIn a bold move, the Department of Transportation has announced updates to the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program to allow state agencies to once again have access to funding that will build new EV charging stations.
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