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VA Shifts $77M From EV Plan to Medical Upgrades
The VA has redirected $77 million from an unused EV charging initiative toward upgrades at three medical facilities. Shifting focus from green infrastructure to veteran care.
Veterans Administration Hospital by Getty Images
The Department of Veterans Affairs has redirected approximately $77 million originally designated for electric vehicle charging stations under the Biden administration. Shifting the funds to upgrades at VA medical and health centers, officials confirmed Wednesday.
The reallocation, approved by VA Secretary Doug Collins, repurposes money first included in President Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2023 budget request. Which sought roughly $163.49 million for minor construction projects and the installation of zero-emission vehicle charging infrastructure across VA facilities. Although the Democrat-controlled Congress approved the funding, the VA reported that none of the EV charging dollars were ever spent and no stations were constructed.
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Collins said the redirection reflects a renewed focus on veteran care rather than environmental initiatives. “In Joe Biden’s VA, the department was distracted by woke social-justice programs and green-energy boondoggles, but those days are long gone,” he said. “VA exists to serve veterans, and we’re making sure all of our resources go toward that noble purpose.” Collins exercised his budget authority on November 6, during the government shutdown. To return the unused $77 million to the VA’s construction and technology budget.
Three locations have been selected to receive portions of the redirected money. The VA will allocate $10 million to upgrade the Friendship House compensated work therapy residence in Oklahoma City, $21.3 million to expand and renovate the MRI ward at the Providence VA Medical Center in Rhode Island, and $13.8 million to improve the radiation oncology unit at the G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi. A VA spokesperson noted that additional VA-affiliated sites may receive funding in the future.
The funding shift comes against the backdrop of Biden’s broader $5 billion national EV initiative, announced during his 2019 presidential campaign and supported by then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, which aimed to install 500,000 EV charging stations nationwide by 2030. President Donald Trump later criticized the plan during his 2024 campaign, calling it a “crazy electric Band-Aid.”
Editor’s Note:
This article presents all confirmed details regarding the VA’s decision to reallocate unused EV charging funds toward medical facility improvements. All information is reported exactly as provided by official statements and public records, with no added analysis or commentary.
