Attorney General Keith Ellison has joined a coalition of 15 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration. The lawsuit aims to prevent the administration from terminating billions in congressionally approved funding for electric vehicle infrastructure. Minnesota risks losing over $50 million if the courts do not intervene.
"It is astonishing that, instead of fighting climate change, President Trump is fighting our attempts to halt climate change," said Attorney General Keith Ellison. "Earlier this week, I was forced to sue Trump for trying to halt the development of wind energy. Today, I am suing Trump to stop him from withholding investments in Minnesota’s electric vehicle infrastructure."
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, was passed by Congress in 2022. It allocated $5 billion for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program (NEVI) to support electric vehicle charging infrastructure across states.
On January 20, President Trump signed an executive order mandating federal agencies to pause disbursement of funds related to the IIJA and Inflation Reduction Act, including NEVI funding. The Federal Highway Administration subsequently informed states that all previously approved plans for NEVI implementation were revoked.
"This is important because transportation pollution is the largest source of carbon emissions in Minnesota," noted Ellison. He emphasized that Minnesotans are already experiencing the effects of climate change through extreme weather events and other environmental impacts.
The suspension of NEVI funds threatens Minnesota's climate goals and places financial pressure on taxpayers to compensate for withheld federal funds. Therefore, Ellison and his colleagues are seeking legal action.
The lawsuit includes attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, and Vermont.