House Overturns Biden’s EV Charger Rule, Setting Up Veto

House Overturns Biden’s EV Charger Rule, Setting Up Veto
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington on Sept. 20, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
Jackson Richman
Updated:
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The House passed a disapproval resolution to block a Biden administration’s rule relating to the waiver of “Buy America” requirements for electric vehicle (EV) chargers, sending the measure back to the desk of President Joe Biden, who is expected to veto it.

The final tally on Jan. 10 was along party lines, 211–197.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) put forth a regulation for a waiver over Buy American requirements surrounding the materials behind chargers and charging stations for EVs. The waiver applies to EV chargers manufactured no later than July 1, “whose installation, whose final assembly occurs in the United States, and whose installation has begun by October 1, 2024,” according to FHWA.

In accordance with the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, more than 55 percent of EV components must be made in the United States.

Three Democrats—Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), and Jon Tester (D-Mont.)—joined 46 Republicans and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) in getting the disapproval resolution passed in the Senate in November.

The White House has said President Biden would veto the resolution.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said in a statement that the disapproval resolution “would eliminate the domestic manufacturing requirement for electric vehicle (EV) chargers funded by the FHWA, thereby harming domestic manufacturing and American jobs” and it “would weaken Buy America requirements by reverting to FHWA’s general waiver for manufactured products, allowing federal dollars—including $7.5 billion from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—to be spent on chargers made in competitor nations like the People’s Republic of China.”

Moreover, the measure “would undermine the hundreds of millions of dollars that the private sector has already invested in domestic EV charging manufacturing and chill further domestic investment in this critical market.”

The Biden administration requiring most materials for electric vehicle chargers be made in America ensures “that federal dollars for EV chargers are used to purchase American-made products while allowing newly announced manufacturing capacity for EV charger components the necessary time to ramp up production,” said OMB.

The passage of the disapproval resolutions comes the same day the administration announced in a statement $623 million in grants toward 47 EV initiatives nationwide.

“America led the arrival of the automotive era, and now we have a chance to lead the world in the EV revolution—securing jobs, savings, and benefits for Americans in the process,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

“This funding will help ensure that EV chargers are accessible, reliable, and convenient for American drivers while creating jobs in charger manufacturing, installation, and maintenance for American workers,” he said.

The administration’s goal is to have 500,000 charging stations nationwide by 2030.

“Every community across the nation deserves access to convenient and reliable clean transportation,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. “The Biden-Harris Administration is bringing an accessible, made-in-America charging network into thousands of communities while cutting the carbon pollution that is driving the climate crisis.

“These investments through the CFI Program will grow our national EV charging network, support President Biden’s goals of achieving net-zero emissions for the nation by 2050, and promote opportunity for all Americans to enjoy the benefits of EV charging,” said Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, referring to the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program, which came about due to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

However, in an apparent setback for the Biden administration’s green agenda, rental car company Hertz announced it is doing away with 20,000 EVs in exchange for gas-powered vehicles.

“Expenses related to collision and damage, primarily associated with EVs, remained high in the quarter,” said Hertz in a Jan. 11 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Nonetheless, said Hertz in the filing, the company “continues to implement a series of initiatives that it anticipates will continue to improve the profitability of the remaining EV fleet,” such as the “expansion of EV charging infrastructure, growing relationships with EV manufacturers, particularly related to more affordable access to parts and labor, and continued implementation of policies and educational tools to help enhance the EV experience for customers.”

Jackson Richman
Jackson Richman
Author
Jackson Richman is a Washington correspondent for The Epoch Times. In addition to Washington politics, he covers the intersection of politics and sports/sports and culture. He previously was a writer at Mediaite and Washington correspondent at Jewish News Syndicate. His writing has also appeared in The Washington Examiner. He is an alum of George Washington University.
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