Another showdown is looming between the Trump administration and states attempting to prioritize clean energy.

What's happening?

The Associated Press reported on a lawsuit brought by 16 states and the District of Columbia that hit out at the Department of Transportation for withholding over $2 billion dedicated to electric vehicle charging infrastructure as part of two programs.

"This is just another reckless attempt that will stall the fight against air pollution and climate change, slow innovation, thwart green job creation, and leave communities without access to clean, affordable transportation," California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement.

The grant funds became available following President Joe Biden's signing of the Inflation Reduction Act. 

This isn't the first time states and the Trump administration have battled in court over EV charging. Fourteen states, including California and Colorado, previously sued in May after arguing the anti-EV administration was blocking funding from a separate $5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program. 

Even if this later challenge is successful, the Trump administration is clearly creating a significant barrier for states trying to access these funds.

Why are the Trump regime's anti-EV actions important?

States deserve access to the benefits funded by their taxpayers on a bill that was passed in bipartisan fashion. Trump and his administration are consistently trying to undo passed legislation, even if there's no lawful justification for reversing course.

It's just a part of his pattern of anti-EV moves. Those include getting rid of the $7,500 tax credit for consumers, lowering pollution standards for automakers' fleets, halting fuel economy penalties, and fighting California in its bid to phase out the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035. 

This move takes aim at EV charging infrastructure, which can make a big difference in easing range anxiety and sweetening the proposition of EV ownership. EVs represent a key solution for cleaner air and a healthier environment. However, the transition requires adequate funding, and Trump's current transportation policy is doing everything in its power to hold it back.

What's being done about Trump's anti-EV moves?

States, especially Democratic-led ones, are banding together and rightfully not taking "no" for an answer when it comes to money they are due. It remains to be seen how this latest lawsuit will play out in court, and whether it will merely delay or actually prevent more charging infrastructure from going up.

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It's becoming clear the administration can make a large difference in impacting EV demand from the consumer side, as well as supply from the automaker side, like Ford pulling the plug on the all-electric F-150 Lightning truck.

Drivers who want to make the switch still can, of course, and there are numerous reasons to do so and have been for years, without the charging infrastructure at issue in this matter, like fuel and maintenance savings. After all, most drivers charge at home overnight. 

Still, as automakers react to Trump's moves and changing market conditions frequently brought on by him, it's unsurprising that momentum toward EVs in the U.S. may be slowing.

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