Tennessee program makes progress on EV chargers while frozen federal projects languish
Tennessee closed a loop of electric vehicle chargers connecting Nashville, Knoxville, Cookeville and Chattanooga in May, marking a significant milestone in the state's push to support EV adoption.
Meanwhile, a federally funded program intended to round out Tennessee's EV charging network — particularly on the state's major interstates and U.S. 64 — has been halted since February at the instruction of President Donald Trump's administration.
Tennessee's Fast Charge TN program aims to position an EV charger every 50 miles along Tennessee interstates and highways. In the roughly 400-mile loop closed in May with the installation of chargers in the small town of Athens, EV drivers can now access chargers every 34 miles.
The state's $24 million program is funded separately through funds from the Volkswagen Diesel Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust, electricity revenues from TVA and cost share from grant recipients.
Some U.S. Republicans are pushing to keep energy tax credits. Tennessee lawmakers aren't among them.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation's Office of Energy Programs released a Notice of Intent for the Fast Charge program's second round in February and expects to solicit projects for 13 gap areas throughout the state 'in the coming months.'
Fast Charge TN's federally backed counterpart remains at a standstill.
The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program (NEVI) allocated up to $5 billion to support EV charger installation along 'Alternative Fuel Corridors' across the nation. Tennessee was set to receive $88 million over a 5-year period to complete a plan created by the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT).
Upon taking office, Trump issued an executive order to pause the disbursement of federal grant money for programs supporting electric vehicles and clean energy initiatives under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The U.S. Federal Highway Administration officially suspended NEVI funding in February, despite having already approved states' program plans.
TDOT awarded $21 million in NEVI funds to 10 applicants in January 2024 to install 30 new charging locations, but none of those contracts have been executed as the pause remains in effect, according to TDOT Community Relations Director Beth Emmons.
Sixteen states, Washington D.C. and multiple environmental and clean energy groups sued the U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration in a Washington federal court in May, arguing the federal agencies had no authority to freeze funds already appropriated by Congress. The Executive Branch, the suit contends, cannot 'override or suspend this process based on changing policy priorities.'
EVs in Tennessee: Uncertainty abounds as Trump targets Biden-era electric vehicle funding
Tennessee is not one of the plaintiffs.
Gov. Bill Lee and Tennessee's Congressional representatives have largely been mum on the tension between the state's work to grow the EV industry and the Trump administration's efforts to retract federal support.
Tennessee has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into incentives and grants to entice EV-related businesses to locate their manufacturing plants in the state. Lee and the state's economic development department have celebrated the hundreds of jobs promised by EV enterprises since 2017, many in rural areas.
All but one of Tennessee's representatives in the U.S. House voted in favor of an amended version of Trump's budget reconciliation bill — which would eliminate electric vehicle tax credits for consumers and create new annual taxes for EV and hybrid owners — in May. Lee also celebrated the bill's passage in the House, and did not respond to a request for comment regarding the potential impact to Tennessee's EV industry.
The bill must pass in the U.S. Senate to become law.
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