Biden agrees to $973B bipartisan infrastructure plan, EV subsidies axed
The plan does, however, call for $7.5 billion to construct a nationwide EV charging infrastructure network.
President Biden announced the deal alongside a group of Republican and Democratic senators.
President Joe Biden on Thursday announced he supports a newly negotiated bipartisan infrastructure plan between Republican and Democratic senators. In total, the plan calls for $973 billion in new spending over five years and $1.2 trillion over eight years when adding the federal government's current baseline; the agreement is about $1 trillion less than what the president first proposed earlier this year.
Biden's proposed plan, titled the American Jobs Plan, initially called for a whopping $100 billion in direct subsidies for electric vehicles, but according to a White House fact sheet, the compromise plan excludes such funds. The original plan would have slashed the price of EVs at the point of sale for car buyers and put money back in their pockets. During a press conference, it wasn't clear if the president still planned to pursue the direct EV subsidies. When asked about his entire infrastructure agenda, he noted the agreed upon plan is only two-thirds of what he wanted, and referenced his "human infrastructure" plan, the American Families Plan.
There was "no agreement on the rest," he said. "We need to do that through the budget process," referring to the budget reconciliation process that only requires 51 votes to pass in the US Senate. EV subsidies or changes to the EV tax credits could find their way into future legislation.
However, the plan does include billions of dollars for other electrification efforts and for a national charging network. Specifically, the bipartisan plan includes $7.5 billion for a network of EV charging stations across the country. It also includes another $7.5 billion for electric buses and other transportation methods. A compromise bakes in a whopping $66 billion for passenger rail and Amtrak, too. "It's a big deal," Biden said in prepared remarks. "We're in a race with China for the 21st century. We have to move, and move fast. Neither side got everything they wanted. That's what it means to compromise," he added.
The president also provided additional details and said the plan pays for itself without raising taxes on anyone making under $400,000 a year and includes no increase to the gas tax. There is no additional EV taxing included, either.
A final bill may head to the president's desk as soon as September, should the process run smoothly across party lines -- and between both chambers of congress.
