Washington state awards $12 million for 96 EV chargers after tussle with Trump administration

Greg Kim, The Seattle Times on Jan 29, 2026

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SEATTLE — Washington announced $12 million in awards for electric vehicle chargers Thursday after a monthslong tussle with President Donald Trump’s administration, which had attempted to withhold the congressionally approved funds.

The grants will go toward building 14 electric vehicle charging stations, with a total of 96 ports, along Interstate 90 and U.S. Routes 97, 195 and 395.

“These projects fill key gaps in the state’s highway EV charging network and will make electric vehicle travel even more convenient,” said Washington Secretary of Transportation Julie Meredith in a news release.

The new EV charging stations will be located along I-90 in Cle Elum, Ellensburg, George, Issaquah, Moses Lake, North Bend, Ritzville and Veradale; along U.S. Route 97 in Goldendale and Toppenish; along U.S. Route 195 in Colfax and Pullman and along U.S. Route 395 in Colville and Deer Park.

Five companies — Electric Era, Energy Northwest, EV Gateway, EVgo and Tesla — received funds to install, operate and maintain those chargers that will provide charging across 528 miles of highway, which are expected to be built within the next two years.

WSDOT will begin work on a call for applications for the second round of funding for chargers along Interstate 405, Interstate 5, Interstate 82, Interstate 182, and U.S. Routes 12 and 101.

The award announcements had been paused for months.

Congress had provided $5 billion to build out a network of electric car chargers across the country as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021. Washington state had been awarded $71.2 million of that.

In February 2025, the Trump administration sent letters to states notifying them that it was canceling already approved plans and withholding funds. Washington state had already begun receiving applications for that funding to build chargers but paused its program because of funding uncertainty.

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown and 13 other attorneys general sued the Trump administration, arguing the funds had been unlawfully withheld. A federal judge in Seattle in June ordered the Trump administration to restore the funding. And on Friday, U.S. District Judge Tana Lin ruled the Trump administration violated federal law when it withheld congressionally approved funds for electric vehicle chargers, barring the U.S. Department of Transportation from future interference with the funding.

(Material from The Seattle Times archives was used in this story.)