Tennessee's Department of Transportation is hopeful that new federal guidance will allow the department to move forward with electric vehicle charger contracts that have been on hold for six months since President Donald Trump froze a federal grant program. (Stock photo by Master via Getty Images)
A Tennessee department head is hopeful that new guidance for a federal program supporting the growth of electric vehicle charging networks may ultimately allow the state to proceed with $21 million in contracts that have been frozen since February.
The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program (NEVI) allocated $88 million to Tennessee over five years to fund EV charger installation along major interstates and Hwy. 64, which runs from Memphis to Pelham roughly along Tennessee’s southern border. The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) awarded $21 million of the funding to 10 applicants in January 2024 to install 30 new charging locations, each with ports to charge several vehicles, but the contracts were not executed before the federal program’s pause.
Those contracts would complement the state’s own EV charging infrastructure grant program, part of an overall push to support EV adoption. Tennessee’s EV manufacturing industry has grown over the last several years – often supported by state incentives to bring hundreds of jobs to rural communities – giving the state an economic interest in the vehicles’ success. Ford’s new BlueOval City facility in rural West Tennessee recently delayed mass production of its full-size electric truck until 2028 as the company refocuses on the production of cheaper, smaller models in Kentucky.
The $5 billion NEVI program has officially been on ice since February 2025, when the U.S. Federal Highway Administration officially suspended funding to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order to pause federal grants supporting electric vehicles and clean energy.
Multiple states have challenged the Trump administration’s ability to freeze the funds in federal court. Tennessee is not among them.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy recently released interim guidance for the program intending to “streamline applications, provide states with more flexibility, and slash red tape,” according to the federal transportation department.
States can reapply for funding under the new requirements over the next 30 days.
Tennessee Department of Transportation Director Beth Emmons said the department is reviewing the new guidance and updated requirements and “hopes to have a path forward with this program by the time the guidelines become official.”
The program’s deployment has been slow. Less than 400 charging ports funded under NEVI are complete and open for use, according to a dashboard maintained by EV States Clearinghouse. The federal government allocated $3.3 billion to states for fiscal years 2022 through 2025. Of the 38 states that have issued awards under previously approved plans (which must now be resubmitted), 16 states have at least one operational station. States have awarded a total $544 million.
The revised guidance went into effect on Aug. 13, and the Federal Highway Administration is accepting comments on the rule changes through Aug. 27.
“If Congress is requiring the federal government to support charging stations, let’s cut the waste and do it right,” Duffy said in a statement released Aug. 11. “The Biden-Buttigieg Administration failed to deliver EV chargers despite their promises … While I don’t agree with subsidizing green energy, we will respect Congress’ will and make sure this program uses federal resources efficiently.”
Changes include scrapping language regarding serving “rural, underserved, and disadvantaged communities,” “equitable distribution,” and opportunities for minority- and women-owned small businesses. The guidance also removes requirements for states to “address consumer protections, emergency evacuation plans, environmental siting, resilience and terrain considerations.”
Charging industry coalition welcomes changes, nonprofit says new requirements are another stall tactic
Charge Ahead Partnership, a coalition supporting a nationwide EV charging network, welcomed the new guidance.
Slow uptake by states in NEVI’s first three years was due to “requirements within the original guidance that slowed down deployment,” according to a coalition statement released Aug. 13.
“The ultimate goal of the NEVI program is to expand the nation’s EV charging infrastructure, and these updated guidelines will make that outcome more likely,” Charge Ahead Partnership Executive Director Jay Smith said. “A streamlined NEVI program will make it easier for the mom-and-pop gas station on the corner, along with national retail chains, to offer EV charging.”
The coalition is particularly optimistic about guidance encouraging states to prioritize applicants who will serve as the site host and charging provider, a move they say will cut down on time that would otherwise be spent searching for a site, and allow for simpler accountability.
The Sierra Club, one of several nonprofit groups that have joined legal challenges against the funding freeze, contends that the new guidance is “unnecessary” and serves only to further delay EV charging buildout as states reapply for funds.
“It’s ironic that this guidance was sold as cutting red tape, yet all it has accomplished is more than half a year of needless delay,” Sierra Club Clean Transportation for All Director Katherine Garcia stated in a news release.
“While the Trump administration has moved away from anti-EV rhetoric in this guidance in response to federal litigation filed by over a dozen states, Sierra Club, and other nonprofit organizations, it is still illegally withholding billions Congress dedicated to EV charging.”
Separate state program continues charger rollout
In the meantime, Tennessee’s separately funded Fast Charge TN program has supported EV charger installation in a 400-mile loop connecting Nashville, Knoxville, Cookeville and Chattanooga.
The state program is powered by money from the Volkswagen Diesel Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust, electricity revenues from TVA and cost share from grant recipients. It aims to position an EV charger every 50 miles along Tennessee interstates and highways.
Under Fast Charge TN’s first round, 35 charging sites are operational and 18 more are under development.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, which oversees the Fast Charge TN program, announced on Friday that it will extend its application period for the second round of funding through Sept. 19 at 4 p.m.
This round will prioritize charging locations in areas that the department anticipates will not be served by the NEVI program.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Comments