Limited Progress on EV Chargers Under Biden Administration

A recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) indicates that the Biden administration has constructed only a few hundred electric vehicle (EV) chargers, despite a substantial investment meant to encourage this development.

Congress allocated $7.5 billion to the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program and other related grant initiatives through the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. These programs are part of efforts to promote EV use among American consumers. However, according to the report, only 384 chargers had been built by April 2025. This shortfall is attributed to a lack of clearly defined performance targets.

The report notes, “The IIJA has funded $7.5 billion for these programs for the fiscal years 2022-2026.” Concerns have been raised about the slow pace at which charging stations have been installed under the established programs.

Furthermore, ambitions to construct 500,000 EV charging stations across the country by 2030 now seem unrealistic. An official from the Department of Transportation mentioned that diversity and equity requirements are complicating this initiative. It appears that these requirements may be slowing down progress considerably.

A review of the NEVI Program also pointed out that as of three and a half years later, approximately 84% of the allocated funds had not been legally committed. In contrast, previous efforts under the Trump administration aimed for a $6 billion EV infrastructure fund.

It has been noted that EV charging infrastructure costs can vary drastically, ranging from $600 to $140,000 per unit, depending on the installation location. Currently, there are roughly 77,000 charging stations in the U.S., with around 219,000 public EV charging points available.