Electric vehicle industry will persist, experts say, despite Trump funding cuts
Despite Trump rolling back Biden-era EV incentives and pausing a $3B charging station expansion, experts assert EVs will dominate U.S. fleets. Industry consensus acknowledges electrification‘s inevitability, though timing and scale remain uncertain. Biden‘s policies previously boosted EV adoption with tax credits and infrastructure funds, contrasting Trump‘s push for "consumer choice" over mandates.
WASHINGTON (IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) - Despite hostility from the new Trump administration, electric vehicles will eventually become a major part of the nation’s vehicle fleet, experts and researchers say.
“There’s not an automaker out there that I have spoken with, or a supplier out there, who said that electrification in some form or fashion isn’t going to be part of the future,” said Todd Cassidy, a managing director at investment firm Brown Gibbons Lang & Company who specializes in the auto market. “It’s just how soon it’s part of the future and how big of a part of the future it’s going to be.”
Under President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, billions were earmarked to incentivize consumers to purchase electric vehicles, fund charging station installation, purchase electric vehicles for federal government use and fund manufacturing and supply chain programs. He also set a non-binding goal that half of all new vehicles would be electric by 2030, to help offset the U.S.’ carbon emissions.
But on his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order repealing the incorrectly labeled “electric vehicle mandate” by the Biden administration, instead promoting “consumer choice” around electric vehicles. In the executive order, he also aims to eliminate subsidies, and some state emissions waivers, like California’s.
Last month, Trump also paused a $3 billion project to expand the network of electric vehicle charging stations. The actions are similar to ones he took his first time in office, rolling back emission standards set by President Barack Obama.
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