DETROIT—The US is poised to roll out funding for states to begin building a network of electric vehicle chargers, President Joe Biden said in a speech here at the Detroit Auto Show.
“Today, I’m pleased to announce we’re approving funding for the first 35 states, including Michigan, to build their own electric charging infrastructure throughout their state,” Biden said. “And y’all are going to be part of a network of 500,000 charging stations throughout the country, installed by the IBEW"—the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
Biden did not specify how much money this first round of funding will include, though it's reportedly $900 million. The money appears to be the first portion of the $5 billion allocated for a national electric vehicle charging network in the 2021 infrastructure bill.
The goal is to make charging stations as “easy to find as gas stations,” Biden said. "The great American road trip is going to be fully electrified."
Zooming out from that, the bigger goal is to rebuild America's infrastructure and middle class through clean energy investments. Biden made it clear he sees this as the next chapter in domestic manufacturing, and a way to counteract the decline experienced in recent decades.
“For most of the last century, we led the world with our cars,” Biden said. “But something went wrong along the way. We used to invest 2% of our GDP in research and development, and now it’s 0.7%. We’re watching the rest of the world go by.”
American-made EVs and EV chargers are a key part of Biden’s strategy to revive the economy and the middle class. The $7,500 EV tax credit included in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 only applies to North American-made vehicles (see a list here).
“We’re building a clean energy economy,” Biden said. “The middle class built America, and unions built the middle class. Nowhere is that more evident than here in Michigan, where we are building the future of the electric vehicle.”
Of course he didn’t forget to mention that he's "a car guy.” Prior to his speech, he also had a chance to walk the Detroit Auto Show floor to check out all the new EVs announced at the show, from brands like Jeep and Chevrolet.