The question is whether all local governments will be willing to participate where federal funding may be lacking. “The next 10 years[in EV charging]are all about urban environments, cities, and middle- and low-income issues,” Reig said. In a world where electric vehicles become political lightning rods, these places may see the most activity for chargers.
EV charging as bipartisan
Many people would like it if EVs and their chargers could avoid the culture wars altogether. Joe Sachs, executive director of the EV Politics Project, a nonpartisan advocacy group, says it’s important to put more public chargers on the ground to get more electricity on the road. It states that. The group’s research shows that some customers are deterred from purchasing electricity due to concerns about the range of EVs and the reliability of charging networks.
Charging companies are still in their infancy, and some are struggling to operate as profitable businesses. Therefore, charger financing obstacles may be a near-permanent concern for the industry. “There is a scary tendency for some in the incoming administration to view electric vehicle funding as a low-hanging fruit,” Sachs said. Some political operators “are using EV bashing as a tool to enact whatever kind of policies are in their interest. That’s frustrating to us.”
That’s good news for those who rely on federal revenue, even if the Trump administration isn’t as enthusiastic. It would be very difficult for the federal government to recover the full amount of federal levies. The government has already allocated at least $3.5 billion in charging funds to states. Forty-two states have opened bids for charger contracts, and 12 states have at least one station in operation. These states span the political spectrum, with Texas, Utah, Kentucky, and Ohio all voting Republican this October and leading the way in charger provision. The same goes for Democratic states like New York, California, Rhode Island, and Maine.
“There is broad support for electrification among many key stakeholders,” said Jason Mathers, vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund’s Zero Emissions Truck Initiative. Manufacturers, labor unions, community groups, politicians who want to create more EV jobs in their districts, and large companies that are already experimenting with EVs, such as Walmart and Amazon, have reasons to want to install underground chargers. . Advocates like Mr. Mathers don’t believe that a change in government alone will eliminate these constituencies. That means the pressure to build a billing network will continue.
Sachs, director of the EV Politics Project, said a number of messages related to EV charging should appeal to politicians from all walks of life. “We want the Trump administration to understand that the transition to EVs is not only important for current jobs, but also for maintaining our competitiveness with China.”
Sachs, for example, finds it encouraging that the Trump administration appears to want to invest in the domestic battery minerals industry. (Currently, most of the mining and processing of battery materials is done overseas, particularly in China.) Creating demand for this type of industry will require more Americans to buy electric vehicles, but , you may not be able to purchase an electric car unless EV chargers are plentiful. around it. Ensuring new chargers are available to all Americans, not just those living in certain “EV-friendly” states, may ultimately help get that message across. do not have.
