Florida wants its federal EV-charger money for air-taxi pads

What Florida is proposing

The Florida Department of Transportation's NEVI deployment plan, dated September 2025, says private companies have built enough chargers along the state's designated corridors without public money. It says FDOT will not spend the funds on everyday passenger vehicles and will instead put them into charging for electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, as part of an intercity "Aerial Highway Network".¹

The plan estimates $5.6 million to design and install the charging equipment at each site and lists 32 sites over five annual tranches, with Florida adding a 20% match. The plan only became public in July 2026, when the Miami Herald obtained it through a records request.^1,4,6

Why the rules may allow it

NEVI money must first go to chargers along designated alternative-fuel corridors, with stations no more than 50 miles apart and four ports of at least 150 kW. Interim guidance issued in August 2025 says that once a state determines, and the Secretary certifies, that its corridors are fully built out, the money can be used on any public road or in other publicly accessible locations. The same guidance gives states more freedom to decide when that point is reached.^2,3

Two outlets report that the Federal Highway Administration has accepted that Florida's corridors are fully built out and is expected to approve the new plan. Neither reports a final decision, and Charjin found no published approval. The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy argues that sites such as private airports and condominium rooftops are not publicly accessible and has asked federal officials to reject the plan.^4,5,6

How much money is left

Florida's NEVI formula allocation was about $198 million over five years. Congress clawed back just over $503 million of unspent NEVI funding from 30 states and territories in a January 2026 budget law. The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy puts Florida's share of that cut at $44.6 million, leaving $153.4 million, and says the state had spent none of its allocation.^3,4,7

The plan's own spending table predates that cut and adds up to $190 million. That means the 32-site programme would need to shrink or find other funding unless the figures are revised. Charjin could not confirm Florida's exact remaining balance from a federal document.^1,4

What drivers have now

FDOT counted 452 rapid-charging stations and 1,708 Level 2 stations on its corridors that were public, open around the clock and usable by all cars as of August 2025. It says public charging ports in the state have more than doubled in four years. About a third of Floridians live in multi-unit housing, according to the Southern Alliance, which is where public charging matters most.^1,4

The aircraft side is less mature. As of August 2026, no eVTOL company had full Federal Aviation Administration approval to carry paying passengers on scheduled routes, according to The Next Web.⁵

What charging costs in Florida

Charjin's worked example uses a 2024 Volkswagen ID.4 Pro, which the EPA rates at 29.8 kWh per 100 miles combined, or about 18.5 kWh per 100 km. The utility FPL charges $0.45 per kWh plus taxes and fees on its public EVolution rapid chargers in 2026, rising to $0.49 by 2029. That works out at about $8.33 per 100 km, or $13.40 per 100 miles.^8,10

Florida's average residential electricity price was 15.03 cents per kWh in July 2026, a preliminary federal figure. At that rate the same car costs about $2.78 per 100 km to charge at home, roughly a third of the rapid-charging cost. FPL says many of its public Level 2 chargers are free, which narrows the gap for drivers who can charge slowly while parked.^8,9

What to watch

The next step is a federal decision on the plan, and whether it treats vertiport chargers as EV charging infrastructure in publicly accessible places. Florida drivers should also watch whether the eventual sites include charging for road vehicles; the plan says such chargers may be added at passenger parking by private industry, which is not a commitment.^1,2