HomeTop StoriesReports misrepresent the progress of the EV charging network under Biden

Reports misrepresent the progress of the EV charging network under Biden

A 2021 federal infrastructure bill allocated funds to build a network of electric vehicle charging stations across the United States by 2030. But social media claims that the Biden administration spent $7.5 billion on just eight stations are false; after a slow rollout, 37 stations are currently operating in 13 states, with hundreds more in the works with funding allocated but not yet spentT.

“Pete Buttigieg will leave his post as Secretary of Transportation after receiving $7.5 BILLION to build 8 EV to upload stations. His legacy will waste billions on something no one wants while millions struggle to afford the things they need,” says a Nov. 24 post on X.

AFP found additional posts on X, Instagram and Facebook claiming that only seven or eight charging stations were the result of the billions in funding across the country.

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<span>A screenshot of a post on X, taken on December 12, 2024</span>” loading=”lazy” width=”467″ height=”423″ decoding=”async” data-nimg=”1″ class=”rounded-lg” style=”color:transparent” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Hgix.P8Rm.FqY0HFL701Vg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNT toPTYzOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp_factcheck_us_713/c18085a227e4eeabc0af52c8443ef92b”/></div><figcaption class=

A screenshot of a post on X, taken on December 12, 2024

In NovemberIn 2021, President Joe Biden signed a Bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. It included $7.5 billion for EV charging stations to electrify the country’s transportation networks.

Keyword searches reveal that the charging station numbers come from a study published by The Washington Post in March 2024 (archived here) covering the early stages of the programme.

“More than two years after Congress appropriated $7.5 billion to help build out these stations, only seven EV charging stations are operational in four states,” the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) told the Post — a slow rollout was also noticed by other media. outlets and analysts (archived here, here and here)

But the social media posts do not take into account the latest, updated numbers released by the FHWA. said the agency and independent experts.

According to to According to the latest data from the FHWA, received via email on December 9, projects were underway for 24,800 federally funded chargers, of which 226 were operational at 37 stations in 13 states.

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Most of the network’s stations will be built in the second half of the decade, Buttigieg said on November 25 in response to online critics (archived here).

Ongoing financing

The budget is divided between two separate programs: $5 billion for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program (archived here), to provide funding for states to deploy charging infrastructure, and $2.5 billion distributed through the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program (CFI) (archived here), dedicated to developments in the electrification and financing of low-emission fuels for underserved communities.

The FHWA, a department of the Ministry of Transport, confirmed to AFP on December 9 that the figures shared in social media posts in late November were not current.

Although Congress has allocated $7.5 billion for grid electrification, funding has not yet been fully requested or spent.

States and local governments are ultimately responsible for infrastructure planning and construction, and NEVI specifies that funds will not be made available to a state until it submits its infrastructure implementation plan.

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“Now that money has been allocated, states and other jurisdictions are starting to spend the money and build EV charging stations,” said Greg Alvarez, spokesperson for the nonpartisan energy and climate policy think tank Energy Innovation (archived here).

The multibillion-dollar plan was to build out a nationwide network over several years – with most funding allocated “between 2022 and 2026, but available through 2030,” Alvarez told AFP on December 9, citing warned that “if funding is cut if we are short of schedule, all these efforts will be in vain.”

President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to scrap what he misleadingly calls “electric vehicle mandates,” and analysts are wondering whether the new administration will distribute remaining NEVI funding for EV charging infrastructure.

Independent climate policy analyst Michael Mazengarb (archived here) said on December 6 that the messages “show the danger of presenting data on government programs that are in the implementation process, and quoting the total amount of funding allocated to a multi-year program . “

Data from the U.S. Office of Transportation and Energy shows steady growth, with a network of currently active and available public electric vehicle charging stations more than doubling in size between January 2021 and November 2024. (bowhoused here).

<span>Screenshot of a diagram showing charging ports for public electric vehicles in the US</span>” loading=”lazy” width=”960″ height=”592″ decoding=”async” data-nimg=”1″ class=”rounded-lg” style=”color:transparent” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/giLgL0NDGhG3_K4ICZN1eg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MD toPTU5Mg–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp_factcheck_us_713/f9ed867d90a72da11b9c6120c08742ae”/><button aria-label=

Screenshot of a graph showing the charging ports for public electric vehicles in the US

Joshua Basseches, assistant professor of environmental studies and public policy at Tulane University (archived here), said challenges for buEV chargers are here to stay, especially when you consider the interests of the public versus private sector.

“But there has been tremendous progress and success in the expansion under the current government,” he said on December 9.

Read more about AFP’s coverage of climate disinformation and disinformation in English here.

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