President Biden united automakers in his mission to drive American leadership towards zero-emissions vehicles when he set an ambitious target of 50% of electric vehicle (EV) sale shares in the U.S. by 2030. In December 2021, President Biden released an EV Charging Action Plan which outlines steps to support developing and deploying chargers throughout American communities across the country. TheDepartment of Energy (DOE) and Department of Transportation (DOT) established a Joint Office of Energy and Transportation which will focus solely on deploying EV infrastructure including charging stations and implementation practices across the industry. The new department will also work alongside industry leaders, manufacturers, workers, and other stakeholders to ensure the nation is appropriately prepared to support convenient EV charging for all.
According to The Biden-Harris Electric Vehicle Charging Action Plan, $5 billion dollars has been allotted to funding for states with the end goal of building a national charging network. In hopes of managing the shifting demand for charging stations, 10% of this budget is set-aside each year to provide grants to States in order to help fill gaps in the network (Whitehouse.gov). The Action Plan also provides $2.5 billion dollars in funding for communities to better support innovative approaches and ensure that charger deployment meets Administration priorities such as rural charging, improving local air quality and increasing EV charging access in disadvantaged communities (Whitehouse.gov).
While the push towards electric vehicles remains a top priority for the administration, news broke late last week regarding an additional measure to ensure the success of EV’s across America. President Biden announced the Defense Production Act last Thursday. An initiative which primarily focuses on the promotion of domestic mining and production of key minerals used in electric vehicles. Biden stated at the press release that this Act is implemented under the assumption that the United State’s long-term reliance on China and other countries to supply inputs for U.S. electric vehicles will be significantly lessened.
According to Sprinklr, the volume of content released on social media in regard to The Defense Production Act nearly tripled over the course of the week leading up the President’s announcement. Trending hashtags alongside the initiative included #rggi which stands for Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative which aims to reduce emission from United States industry. Content was most prominent in New York, Texas, and Washington, D.C. While the majority of news dissemination occurred through traditional news outlets (8,196 posts in the past week), additional conversations surrounding The Defense Production Act occurred on Twitter, Reddit, and through different chat forums.
While sentiment scores remain heavily neutral for the time being (11.9K), it is likely that this conversation is far from over. President Biden also announced a new electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility in North Carolina last Tuesday. This project is worth approximately $4 billion dollars and promises to create more than 7,000 jobs while rolling out hundreds of thousands of electric vehicles and batteries across the nation. It is expected that as the project rolls out an increased number of news sources and specifically North Carolina residents, will weigh in on the conversation.
The promise of an all-electric vehicle future is bright. Plans are being initiated to ensure the transition to zero-emissions vehicles will be as fruitful for American workers, as it will be for the environment.
