A Level 2 charger at the Fremont County Pioneer Museum in Lander, Wyoming. | Photo courtesy of OtterSpace

CHEYENNE (WNE) — U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., has introduced the Highway Funding Flexibility Act.

(Courtesy of Cynthia Lummis, Facebook)

If passed into law, it would free up money “stuck in accounts intended to fund Biden’s radical EV charger initiative” and direct those funds to pay for projects critical for travel and commerce throughout Wyoming, a news release from Lummis’ office said.

“For far too long, the people of Wyoming were forced to endure Biden’s radical EV mandates that dedicated their hard-earned tax dollars toward Green New Deal initiatives that do not effectively serve the state of Wyoming,” Lummis said in the release. “My legislation frees up these funds to address Wyoming’s actual transportation needs without adding to the national debt, rather than forcing Biden-era EV mandates on the Cowboy State.”

Under the Biden administration, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provided $5 billion for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program ($1 billion annually from FY22-FY26), and $2.5 billion from FY22-FY26 for the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program, totaling $7.5 billion.

In February, President Trump paused this program, giving Congress the ability to redirect appropriated funds stuck in the accounts, the release said.

If passed, the Highway Funding Flexibility Act would ensure the state of Wyoming can use these existing funds to pay for the state’s highway infrastructure needs, including roads, bridges, truck parking and wildlife crossings. The bill’s scope for eligible activities includes engineering, design, construction, reconstruction, resurfacing, restoration and rehabilitation.