Congress quietly defunds EV charging, redirects billions to highway repair
S. 1066 — Highway Funding Flexibility Act of 2025 · Filed by Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) · Introduced Mar 13, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill redirects unspent federal electric vehicle charging infrastructure funds—originally allocated under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—toward traditional highway repair, bridge maintenance, and wildlife crossing projects instead. States would receive these redirected funds proportionally based on their existing highway apportionment, and the bill prevents the money from being used for EV charging infrastructure going forward.
Why we flagged it
The bill's stated purpose is 'flexibility,' but its actual mechanism is to strip EV charging funds and redirect them to traditional highway projects. This is a functional defunding of climate-aligned infrastructure, not a neutral reallocation.
What the text implies
- Unobligated EV charging funds (money not yet spent) are permanently redirected; states cannot reclaim them for their original EV infrastructure purpose, effectively canceling the federal EV charging commitment.
- The bill uses 'notwithstanding' clauses to override the original Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act's EV charging mandate, suggesting deliberate circumvention of prior legislative intent.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
highway construction contractors; trucking and freight companies (ODFL, similar carriers); heavy equipment manufacturers