ICYMI: Vice President Kamala Harris Unveils the Biden-Harris Administration's Electric Vehicle Charging Action Plan

Plan fast tracks the investments in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; makes the most transformative investment in electric vehicle charging in U.S. history

This morning in Brandywine, Maryland, Vice President Kamala Harris announced the Biden-Harris Administration's Electric Vehicle Charging Action Plan, which fast tracks Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investments and support the goals President Biden laid out with automakers and autoworkers to make half of U.S. vehicle sales electric by 2030. The Electric Vehicle Charging Action Plan establishes a joint electric vehicles office between the Departments of Energy and Transportation, issues guidance and standards for states, and ensures consultations with diverse stakeholders, including manufacturers, governments, equity and environmental justice groups, civil rights groups, and tribal communities. The Vice President also made the case for the Build Back Better Act, which will cut the sticker price of new and used electric vehicles.

Below is what people are reading:

AP: Harris unveils plan for electric vehicle charging network
[Matthew Daly, 12/13/21]

The Biden administration released an ambitious federal strategy Monday to build 500,000 charging stations for electric vehicles across the country and bring down the cost of electric cars with the goal of transforming the U.S. auto industry.

"The future of transportation in our nation and around the world is electric," Vice President Kamala Harris said at an EV charging facility in suburban Maryland.The $1 trillion infrastructure law President Joe Biden signed last month authorizes a nationwide network of charging stations and sets aside $5 billion for states to build them, including $63 million for Maryland. The law also provides an additional $2.5 billion for local grants to support charging stations in rural areas and in disadvantaged communities. […]

Harris visited a maintenance facility in Brandywine, just outside Washington, where she received a demonstration of how chargers work and learned about a plan to electrify the government fleet in Maryland's Prince George's County.

ABC: Biden administration accelerates plans for a national EV charging network
[Morgan Korn, 12/13/21]

Vice President Kamala Harris will announce on Monday the administration's latest efforts to fast-track a nationwide charging network for electric vehicles. The EV Charging Action Plan lays out how federal agencies, such as the Department of Energy and the Department of Transportation, can support the president's EV goals. Biden said he would like half of all new vehicle sales to be electric by 2030. […]

Creating a convenient, national charging infrastructure will build public confidence in EVs, according to the administration, which is focusing efforts on adding charging stations in rural, disadvantaged and hard-to-reach locations.

The Hill: Harris rolls out plan for electric vehicle charging network
[Rachel Frazin, 12/13/21]

The White House and Vice President Kamala Harris rolled out a plan on Monday for building out an electric vehicle charging network. A fact sheet the White House released on the plan relies heavily on the bipartisan infrastructure law and existing actions it has taken, but there are some new announcements as well. Those include the creation of a Joint Office of Energy and Transportation between the Energy and Transportation departments, which will be tasked with implementing the charging network and other electrification provisions in the law. The law provides $7.5 billion to advance the buildout of an electric vehicle charging network.

"People who live in apartments...might not have a private driveway where they can install a plug," Harris said during remarks in Brandywine, Md. When we install public chargers, in rural, urban and suburban neighborhoods, we make it easier for people to go electric," she added.

Marketwatch: VP Harris wants 500,000 charging sites as Biden administration keeps to EVs to replace 50% of auto sales
[Rachel Koning Beals, 12/13/21]

The Biden administration released a plan on Monday it thinks can help "fast track" the uptake of electric-vehicle use in the U.S. by building 500,000 charging stations across the country. Vice President Kamala Harris made the announcement at a government facility in Maryland, extending the Biden team's news last week that it will push via executive order for greener energy throughout federal buildings and for its vehicle fleets.

The Monday announcement is part of the $1 trillion infrastructure law Biden signed last month, which authorizes the charging stations and sets aside $5 billion for states, with a goal to build a national charging network. The law also provides an additional $2.5 billion for local grants to support charging stations in rural areas and in disadvantaged communities.

"The auto industry is clearly moving toward electric. We need to make the shift faster and make sure it is driven by the United States. That means manufacturing millions of electric cars, trucks and buses right here in our country," Harris said.

E&E News: White House rolls out $7.5B electric vehicle charging plan
[Arianna Skibell, 12/13/21]

"The auto industry is clearly moving toward electric. We need to make the shift faster and make sure it is driven by the United States," Harris said at the maintenance facility in Brandywine.

"That means manufacturing millions of electric cars, trucks and buses right here in our country," she said. "And it means installing a national network of EV chargers."

Harris said the bipartisan infrastructure package, which also allocates funding to build out the North American EV battery supply chain, is a good first step. But she renewed her call for Senate Democrats to advance Biden's $1.7 trillion climate and social spending bill, which the House advanced last month. The "Build Back Better Act" offers up to $12,500 in incentives for electric vehicles made in the United States by unionized workforces.

"We want more families in America to be able to afford an electric car that is made in America," she said. "The future of transportation is electric. But that future is not inevitable. It must be built." To that end, the administration last week announced a plan to electrify the federal government's fleet of 600,000 vehicles

Detroit News: Biden administration announces EV charging network plan
[Riley Beggin, 12/13/21]

The Biden administration announced a federal strategy Monday shaping the roll-out of $7.5 billion for electric vehicle charging approved through the bipartisan infrastructure bill. The funding is meant to jump-start the creation of a nationwide network of 500,000 EV chargers nationwide, which industry and officials believe is crucial for making zero-emission vehicles viable for customers.

Under the administration's plan, the departments of Transportation and Energy will create a joint office responsible for providing resources and guidance on EV charging and other electrification provisions in the infrastructure law. […]

"There can be no doubt the future of transportation in our nation and around the world is electric," Vice President Kamala Harris said during a speech Monday at a maintenance facility in Maryland.