Wisconsin is joining a new lawsuit filed against the Trump administration aimed at securing the release of $62 million in funding which was earmarked for dozens of electric vehicle infrastructure projects.
Last March, the state legislature
approved a bill allowing the
Wisconsin Department of Transportation to receive and award $78 million from the
U.S. Department of Energy to private-sector businesses who will construct, own, and operate EV charging facilities.
The $78 million in
National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program funding earmarked for Wisconsin must be awarded to private-sector businesses to construct EV charging infrastructure or interstates, alternative fuel corridors and “regional routes of significance.”
Last May, WisDOT announced the first portion of these funds would be used to support 53 projects to expand electric vehicle infrastructure across Wisconsin. Earlier this year, the first electric vehicle charging stations opened in Wisconsin.
Now, the remaining $62 million for Wisconsin infrastructure remains in jeopardy and is being "obstructed by the Trump Administration and USDOT," according to a press release from the
Gov. Tony Evers' office.
WisDOT has already designated several key highways as Alternative Fuel Corridors, including I-90, I-94, I-43, I-41, I-535, U.S. Highway 53 and U.S. Highway 151. The state has also requested approval to include U.S. Highway 51, State Highway 29, U.S. Highway 2, U.S. Highway 141, U.S. Highway 8 and U.S. Highway 41 in the program.
The lawsuit announced today seeks to force the Trump Administration to stop obstructing infrastructure investments that Wisconsin and other states were expecting to receive and to immediately release the funding.
The lawsuit argues that the Trump Administration’s attempts to block electric vehicle infrastructure funding that was already approved by the U.S. Congress violate constitutional checks and balances.
