Trump Admin’s EV Funding Freeze Violated Federal Law, Says Government Watchdog

The GAO says the Transportation Department had overstepped its authority in a directive to revoke EV-related funding that had been mandated by Congress.
Trump Admin’s EV Funding Freeze Violated Federal Law, Says Government Watchdog
President Donald Trump, accompanied by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, speaks to members of the media as he arrives for a House Republican meeting at the Capitol on May 20, 2025. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
|Updated:
0:00

A government watchdog says President Donald Trump’s administration may have violated a little-known federal law through a move to rescind funding for a Biden-era electric vehicle (EV) program.

The law in question, known as the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, places limits on the president’s power to “impound,” or unilaterally refuse to disburse, funding appropriated by Congress.