House Republicans Raise Questions About EV Charger Program

WASHINGTON — Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are raising questions about the implementation of the Biden administration’s electric vehicle charger subsidy program.

In a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, a trio of Republican lawmakers led by Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., don’t mince words.

“We have significant concerns that under your efforts American taxpayer dollars are being woefully mismanaged,” write the lawmakers, who also include Reps. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina, and H. Morgan Griffith of Virginia. 

“Despite recent award announcements, little progress has been made in the buildout of electric vehicle infrastructure,” they said.

They note that on Dec. 15, 2023, the departments announced the opening of America’s first EV fast charging stations funded through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program.

The program, for which $5 billion was provided under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, provides funding to states to strategically deploy electric vehicle charging stations and to establish an interconnected network to facilitate data collection, access and reliability.

The act also provided $2.5 billion for a second incentive program, the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program.

The lawmakers say their concerns stem from the fact that the funded projects, in Ohio and New York, herald the creation of “merely eight charging stations” more than two years after the passage of the infrastructure and jobs act.

Their raised eyebrows come at a time when the EV industry as a whole is experiencing a number of market and logistical challenges.

For instance, recently, Charlotte, North Carolina, based Albemarle Corp put a planned $1.3 billion EV battery processing plant in South Carolina on hold as lower demand has significantly reduced prices for the critical minerals needed to build EV batteries.

During a Feb. 15 conference call, Albemarle’s president and CEO Kent Masters told analysts that the company requires “better pricing in order to execute on those projects.” 

Lithium prices have fallen as much as 90% over the past year, according to published reports.

In the meantime, makers of EV and battery-powered vehicles are experiencing a slowdown in the market, stemming from the high-interest rates currently being charged for car loans, consumer concerns about the resale value of their vehicle, and the fact that early adopters of the vehicles have already opted into the market and the anticipated next wave of buy-in has yet to materialize.

Against that backdrop, the Republican lawmakers claim the roll out of the EV charging infrastructure is languishing for a number of reasons, including delays in the delivery of chargers, concerns from some states about labor contracting requirements and minimum operating standards for chargers.

In addition, they note that 22 states have not issued solicitations for National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program funding, and that there has only been a “limited and questionable delivery” of awards from the CFI Discretionary Grant Program. 

In addition to questioning the pace of the role out of EV charging stations, the Republican lawmakers also asked the departments to provide estimates of how many chargers the administration is anticipating the program will help build by the end of the year; explain how they are ensuring that federal dollars do not overbuild private sector investments in this area; and explain how the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation is ensuring federal funds are not supporting Chinese or Chinese-affiliated entities.

The Biden administration has set a goal of 50% of all new vehicle sales being EVs by 2030. Neither the Energy nor the Transportation Department has responded to the letters, which were sent to them on Thursday.

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