OLYMPIA, WA — Washington Attorney General Nick Brown is co-leading a multistate lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Transportation, alleging the agency unlawfully suspended federal funding for electric vehicle charging infrastructure programs approved by Congress.
According to the complaint filed Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has refused to obligate funds for two bipartisan electric vehicle charging programs created under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Program and the Electric Vehicle Charger Reliability and Accessibility Accelerator Program. The lawsuit alleges the suspension occurred without explanation or formal notice and violates the U.S. Constitution, federal law, and the Administrative Procedure Act.
Brown said the funding freeze undermines consumer demand and slows progress toward cleaner transportation. He noted Washington is among the nation’s leaders in electric vehicle adoption, with one in five new cars sold in the state in 2024 being a plug-in electric vehicle.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, passed in 2022, established the programs as five-year efforts to build and repair EV charging stations nationwide. The lawsuit states USDOT and the Federal Highway Administration have not obligated funds from either program since spring 2025.
Washington could lose approximately $19 million in previously authorized funding if the suspension continues, according to the Attorney General’s Office. Planned projects included fast-charging stations for medium- and heavy-duty trucks and a hydrogen fueling station along the I-5 corridor. Only a portion of the allocated funds has been released.
The complaint also highlights impacts on specific projects, including a proposed direct current fast-charging station at the University of Washington Bothell campus intended to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. The university has not yet received the allocated funding.
The lawsuit asks the court to declare USDOT’s actions unlawful and order the department to resume obligating funds as Congress intended. Brown is joined in leading the case by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser. Attorneys general from more than a dozen other states, along with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, have joined the coalition.
