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By Matthew Daly

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON 鈥斅燭he Biden administration聽is awarding $623 million in grants to states, local governments and tribes to help build an electric vehicle charging network across the nation. Grants announced Thursday will pay for 47 EV charging stations and related projects, including 7,500 EV charging ports, in 22 states and Puerto Rico, officials said.

鈥淎merica led the arrival of the automotive era, and now we have a chance to lead the world in the EV revolution 鈥� securing jobs, savings and benefits for Americans in the process,鈥� Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. The new funding 鈥渨ill help ensure that EV chargers are accessible, reliable and convenient for American drivers, while creating jobs in charger manufacturing, installation and maintenance for American workers.鈥�

President Joe Biden has set a goal to build聽a national network of 500,000 publicly available chargers聽by 2030. The charging ports are a key part of Biden鈥檚 effort to encourage drivers to move away from gasoline-powered cars and trucks that contribute to climate change.

But progress has been slow. Ohio and New York are the only states that have聽opened charging stations聽under the聽National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure聽Formula program. Several other states, including Pennsylvania and Maine, have broken ground on federally funded projects and are expected to open stations early this year. A total of 28 states, plus Puerto Rico, have either awarded contracts to build chargers or have accepted bids to do so.

Since Biden took office in 2021, EV sales have more than quadrupled and reached more than 1 million last year. The number of publicly available charging ports has grown by nearly 70 percent to 168,426, White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi said.

That number is about one-third of the way to Biden鈥檚 goal, with six years remaining.

鈥淲e are on an accelerating trajectory to meet and exceed the president鈥檚 goal to hit 500,000 chargers and build that nationwide backbone,鈥� Zaidi told reporters Wednesday.

Hours after the announcement, the Republican-controlled House approved a measure that would block a Biden administration policy that temporarily waives some domestic content requirements for federally funded EV chargers. Supporters said their vote would keep China out of the supply chain for EV chargers, a politically potent idea that is supported by lawmakers in both parties.

鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to spend $5 billion of taxpayer money to build electric vehicle charging stations for the United States, it should be made by Americans in America using American products,鈥� said Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, who introduced the resolution last year.

The Senate approved the measure, 50-48, in November, despite a veto threat from the White House.

The House approved the measure, 209-198, on Thursday, sending it to Biden.

Democrats called the resolution misguided, noting that the waiver expires July 1. The waiver was needed to give American manufacturers time to develop domestic content such as steel and iron used in chargers, they said.

Rep. Sam Graves, R-Missouri, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said the waiver 鈥渦ndercuts American investments and risks empowering foreign nations鈥� such as China.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not better for the climate, as China is the number one emitter of greenhouse gases around the world,鈥� Graves said. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 certainly not better for American competitiveness or national security.鈥�

The debate highlights a challenge Biden faces between more clean energy and increased reliance on China, which dominates the EV battery market. Widespread availability of chargers is crucial to meet another Biden administration goal: ensuring that EVs聽make up half of all new car sales聽by 2030. Along with cost, 鈥渞ange anxiety鈥� about a lack of available charging stations is a key impediment to buying an EV. About 80 percent of respondents cited concerns about a lack of charging stations as a reason not to purchase an electric vehicle, according to聽an April survey聽from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

Seven in 10 respondents said they would not purchase an EV because it takes too long to charge and the battery technology isn鈥檛 ready.

Buttigieg and other administration officials brushed those concerns aside and said the future of auto travel is electric.

鈥淲e鈥檙e at a moment now where the electric vehicle revolution isn鈥檛 coming; it is very much here,鈥� Buttigieg told reporters.

EV sales now represent about 9 percent of all passenger vehicle sales, Buttigieg said. A new study shows that EVs cost just 4 percent more than gasoline-powered cars, he added.

鈥淭here鈥檚 been a really remarkable drop in the prices that consumers face for EVs,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd we believe we are fast approaching the period when EVs, on average, will be cheaper than internal combustion vehicles.鈥�

The grants announced Thursday include $311 million for 36 鈥渃ommunity鈥� projects, including two for Native American tribes in Alaska and Arizona. The projects will boost EV charging and hydrogen fueling infrastructure in urban and rural communities, including at high-use locations such as schools, parks, libraries, and apartment buildings.

Meanwhile, $312 million will go to 11 highway 鈥渃orridors鈥� along roadways designated as Alternative Fuel Corridors. The projects include $19.6 million for public chargers in Riverside County, California 鈥� between Los Angeles and Phoenix on the Interstate 10 corridor.

A pollution district in San Joaquin Valley, California, will receive $56 million to build two state-of-the-art truck charging sites in Taft and Gustine, California, to support two of the nation鈥檚 busiest freight corridors along Interstate 5.

About $70 million will go to the North Central Texas Council of Governments to build up to five hydrogen fueling stations for medium- and heavy-duty freight trucks in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.