Georgia can keep spending $135 million in federal funds allocated by the Biden administration for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including sections of Interstates 16 and 95 in Coastal Georgia, according to an edited plan approved this month.
The project to install EV charging points on unserved Georgia interstate and highway corridors has survived largely intact, but state officials deleted language that referred to equity and safety, according to an analysis by The Current GA.
The future of the five-year project had been in doubt earlier this year. President Donald Trump’s Department of Transportation halted funding nationwide for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program then demanded new state plans that omit any emphasis on serving rural, underserved or disadvantaged communities. The federal agency also removed requirements that states address emergency evacuation needs, small business participation and labor and safety standards.
Sixteen states and Washington D.C. sued, arguing a president can’t legally freeze this funding approved by Congress. A federal judge has dealt Trump a setback though the case is ongoing. Georgia did not join the suit.
Instead, Georgia was among the states that submitted revised plans. GDOT did not respond to numerous requests for comment on this program.
In 2021, the U.S. Congress passed the $5 billion program with bipartisan support for the goal of easing long-distance trips in electric vehicles. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, praised it the next year, saying the state’s Department of Transportation would play a critical role in building infrastructure to match rapidly developing EV manufacturing capacity around the state.
GDOT’s revised plan leaves out former statements on equity and workforce considerations. These include sentences such as: “GDOT recognizes the impacts new transportation infrastructure and related energy systems may have on rural and historically disadvantaged communities and is committed to implementing an EV program that is convenient, reliable, affordable, and equitable for all users.”
The new plan also leaves out chapters of technical detail about existing road conditions.
What remains is an emphasis during the state’s second round of federal project spending on Interstate 95 in Liberty or McIntosh and on I-16 in Bryan and Chatham.
Georgia awarded its first funds last year to help pay for new EV charging stations in Brunswick, Dublin, Byron, Metter and Tifton.
Love’s Travel Center in Brunswick is getting $650,000 to help pay for an EV charging station, matched by $435,000 in company money. Contracting and design are underway, according to Love’s, and the four-charger station is likely to open in 2026.
