The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has approved 35 of the electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure deployment plans submitted by all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
The approved states now have access to a portion of the $900 million funding in fiscal year 2022 and 2023. The funding is available through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, according to the FHWA. The agency noted that NEVI is provided with $5 billion in funds through the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
According to a statement, FHWA said state departments of transportation with approved EV infrastructure plans could start receiving reimbursement for construction costs and gain more options to use their NEVI funds for projects directly related to the charging of a vehicle.
Projects include the upgrade of existing and construction of new EV charging infrastructure, operation and maintenance costs of the stations, installation of on-site electrical service equipment, community and stakeholder engagement, workforce development activities, EV charging station signage, data sharing activities, and related mapping analysis and activities.
The NEVI formula program is just one type of funding available to advance EV deployment, FHWA noted. Additional funding sources include:
- The Inflation Reduction Act, which FHWA said provides tax credits to purchase new and used electric vehicles, as well as making an additional $3 billion to help support access to EV charging for economically disadvantaged communities through the Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant program.
- The CHIPS and Science Act, which the agency said provides $52.7 billion for American semiconductor research, development, manufacturing and workforce development. This includes $39 billion in manufacturing incentives, including $2 billion for the legacy chips used in automobiles.
- Ten percent of the NEVI Formula Program that is set aside each fiscal year to fill gaps in the national network through discretionary grants.
- The $2.5 billion Discretionary Grant Program for Charging and Fueling Infrastructure, which FHWA said is intended to support equity commitments for increasing EV charging access in rural, underserved and overburdened communities.
- The cumulative $7 billion in funding to support an end-to-end domestic supply chain for domestic EV battery manufacturing available through the U.S. Department of Energy.
FHWA noted it is also working on related efforts to establish ground rules for spending NEVI funds. For example, the agency published a notice of proposed rulemaking on proposed minimum standards and requirements for NEVI funding in June and plans to finalize that rulemaking.
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Source: AASHTO
