Trump’s new “Buy American” requirement for electric vehicle charging would significantly limit construction

It seems obvious at this point to say that Donald Trump doesn’t want to spend a dime on electric vehicle charging. he Tried to freeze $5 billion in funding For the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, which was approved as part of the bipartisan Infrastructure Act. And when a federal judge The government ordered the funds to be unfrozenHis administration reached A new tactic to disrupt the plan.

Electric vehicle chargers must now be manufactured in the United States, with components that also originate in the United States, in order to receive federal funding, the U.S. Department of Transportation said today. Under the proposal, electric vehicle chargers would need to increase their U.S.-made parts from 55% to 100% in order to be eligible for NEVI funding. But industry and environmental groups say the new requirements will essentially stop electric vehicle charge accumulation in their tracks.

“This proposal does not meet the industry where it is today and may discourage further investment in the production of American-made electric vehicle chargers,” Albert Gore, executive director of the Zero Emissions Transportation Association, said in a statement. “Ultimately, this will hinder the job growth that Buy America aims to create.”

The reason, of course, is that most of the supply chain for electric vehicle charging equipment passes through China. Thanks to significant government support and years of investment, Chinese companies have largely supplied most of the electric vehicle charging stations installed in the United States, Europe and elsewhere.

And while American manufacturers are progressing rapidly thanks to NEVI, there is not a single EV charging station online today that can say that 100 percent of its materials and components originate in the United States. According to Ingrid Malmgren, policy director at Plug In America, most of the cases, cables and final assembly of chargers are currently manufactured in the United States, while power modules and advanced electronics are sourced globally.

So, in a sense, this USDOT proposal is another de facto moratorium on EV charging — at a time when fast, reliable charging infrastructure is seen as essential to keeping U.S. EV sales afloat.

“This is another bad faith attempt to kill NEVI and prevent the construction of essential infrastructure that Congress funds for all Americans,” said Katherine Garcia, director of Transportation for All at the Sierra Club. “This will disrupt the deployment of electric vehicle charging, push the United States backwards, and deprive communities of access to clean, affordable transportation options.”

Electric vehicle advocates say they support gradual increases in American-made charging equipment as a condition of receiving federal funding, but requiring 100 percent compliance right now is impossible. Malmgren described it as “far from U.S. manufacturing capacity.”

But halting the program is likely the Trump administration’s real goal. Over the past year, Trump has enacted policies that allow companies to pollute more, while restricting efforts to promote clean fuel alternatives, including electric vehicles. If he’s honest about wanting more EV charging manufacturing in the U.S., there will be a more realistic timeline for incentivizing companies to build here. But as it stands, the proposal would essentially refreeze the NEVI program while it gets moving again.

States had just begun receiving promised NEVI funds when this proposal was announced. Georgia, for example He was counting on $134 million To build dozens of new charging kiosks.