White House Clarifies Executive Order Halting IRA Disbursements
The Office of Management and Budget indicated that the order is applicable only to specific programs within the Inflation Reduction Act.
This week, the White House Office of Management and Budget issued a memo clarifying the authorized allocations that may be rescinded from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, based on a January 20 executive order from former President Donald Trump.
The “Terminating the Green New Deal” section of the package broadly instructs that “all agencies shall immediately pause the disbursement of funds appropriated through” the IRA and BIL.
However, Vaeth’s memo clarifies that this disbursement pause is specifically limited to electric vehicle (EV) programs, particularly calling for the defunding of IRA and BIL allocations that provide funds for EV charging stations made available through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program and the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program.
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The executive order from Trump aims to create “a level regulatory playing field for consumer choice in vehicles” and, where suitable, eliminate state emissions waivers that restrict sales of gasoline-powered vehicles.
It also seeks to remove “unfair subsidies and other poorly conceived government-imposed market distortions that favor EVs over alternative technologies, effectively mandating their purchase by individuals, private companies, and government entities by making other vehicles financially unfeasible.”
Furthermore, the memo asserts that to execute Trump’s executive actions, federal agencies must ensure that IRA and BIL allocations support the overarching goal “to safeguard the United States’ economic and national security and military readiness by guaranteeing that a plentiful supply of reliable energy is readily accessible throughout every state and territory in the nation.”
“Agency leaders are authorized to disburse funds as they see fit after consulting with the Office of Management and Budget,” Vaeth notes.
The Trump administration, along with congressional Republicans, aims to tighten tax incentives, reclaim loans and grants, and make adjustments to un-finalized rules under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to undermine aspects of the IRA, which Trump has referred to as “the green new scam” during his campaign.
