Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Ev Charging topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Austin Energy says $15 million federal EV charging grant is awarded but status uncertain after federal review
Summary
Austin Energy reported a $15 million U.S. Department of Transportation grant to expand electric vehicle charging in underserved areas, but staff told the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee the funds are under review by a recent executive action and the city is awaiting clarification.
Austin Energy’s general manager, Bob Kahn, told the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee that the utility received a $15,000,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Charging and Fueling Infrastructure program to expand electric-vehicle charging infrastructure with an equity focus.
Kahn said the grant is intended “to provide essential EV charging infrastructure in underserved areas, bridging critical gaps and benefiting historically underinvested neighborhoods.” He also cautioned that “the status of this grant is uncertain under recent executive order from the new administration.”
Why it matters: city staff said the USDOT award would help place chargers in neighborhoods identified as underinvested, a stated Council priority for equitable access to EV infrastructure. Committee members pressed staff for more details about where chargers would be sited and how locations would be chosen.
Discussion and next steps: Council members asked for a memo describing the selection process. Council Member Kadri asked whether the city had identified locations; Kahn replied the program would “focus on areas that are... under invested areas of town” but that staff did not yet have exact site lists. Kahn said staff would “work with the council members” on location selection and consider community input, telling the committee, “We will certainly work with all of you on that.”
Kahn and other staff also referenced broader federal funding uncertainty. Council Member Vela asked what executive order Kahn was referring to; Kahn said the administration (identified in the meeting as President Trump) had “ordered kind of a halt on this stuff to look things over,” leaving the timing of award disbursement unclear. Mayor Wesson and staff said the city’s intergovernmental relations (IGR) office was preparing a memo and coordinating with Washington contacts and that more information was expected from the city manager’s office later the day of the meeting.
What’s not decided: staff did not provide a timeline for charger siting, a finalized list of candidate locations, or a public engagement schedule. When asked whether there would be public input, Kahn said “that’s certainly something we can consider” and that council members would have opportunities to weigh in.
Context: Kahn compared Austin’s expected award with larger federal awards elsewhere, saying, “Houston has that $250,000,000 or so,” and he referenced a separate ~ $31,000,000 allocation the city expects for a different program. Kahn said staff think Austin will receive the latter amount, but he stressed the federal review could affect timing or availability.
Ending: Staff committed to provide the committee a memo on federal funding status and to follow up with a process outline for site selection and potential public input. The grant and its deployment therefore remain contingent on federal review and subsequent direction from the city manager’s IGR team.
