Attorney General Phil Weiser sues to stop illegal termination of federal electric vehicle infrastructure funding
May 7, 2025 (DENVER) – Colorado is leading a lawsuit to stop the Trump administration from illegally terminating billions in congressionally approved funding for electric vehicle infrastructure, Attorney General Phil Weiser announced today. Unless the courts check the president’s overreach, Colorado stands to lose tens of millions of dollars in electric vehicle infrastructure funding.
“A bipartisan majority of Congress authorized funding for electric vehicle infrastructure, and President Trump and the Department of Transportation are breaking the law by revoking it,” said Attorney General Weiser. “Colorado has already made significant progress in developing the foundation for infrastructure needed for widespread electric vehicle adoption, and the state’s federally approved plans were designed to fill gaps in rural Colorado and other underserved communities. Congress had the foresight to authorize funding to build this important infrastructure, and it must be restored immediately. Just as I have with other illegal actions by the president and his administration, I will not hesitate to take them to court to ensure they follow the law.”
In 2022, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or IIJA, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. One provision of the IIJA appropriated $5 billion for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program, or NEVI, to facilitate electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the states.
On January 20, President Trump signed an executive order that mandated all federal agencies to pause disbursement of funds related to the IIJA and the Inflation Reduction Act, including NEVI funding. Despite being tasked by Congress to fund NEVI, the Federal Highway Administration notified states in early February that the agency was revoking all previously approved plans to implement NEVI, a requirement for funding under IIJA.
In Colorado, officials with the Colorado Department of Transportation and the Colorado Energy Office worked together to develop plans for deployment of $57 million in NEVI funding, with $44 million approved by the FHWA for use in fiscal years 2022 to 2025. Acting in reliance of the approval of those plans, and the law, Colorado has already awarded $33 million, with contractual guarantees of $18 million. FHWA has only distributed $8 million, leaving the state and its contractors in an uncertain position. If the cuts are allowed to stand, the state will have to choose between cutting the program entirely or making cuts to other programs that Coloradans rely on.
The lawsuit filed today by Attorney General Weiser and 16 other attorneys general seeks a court order against FHWA’s unlawful actions, and a restoration of the electric vehicle infrastructure funding for the states.
Read the motion for preliminary injunction (PDF).
Attorney General Weiser is joined in filing the lawsuit by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, and Vermont.
This is the 18th lawsuit Attorney General Weiser has filed against the administration. For more on the attorney general’s efforts to defend Colorado from illegal federal actions, visit coag.gov/defending-colorado.
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Media Contact:
Lawrence Pacheco
Chief Communications Officer
(720) 508-6553
lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov