Welcome to The On-Ramp, the newsletter published by Venable’s Autonomous and Connected Mobility Team. The On-Ramp explores legal and policy developments in the world of autonomous and connected vehicles, smart infrastructure, electrification, and other emerging automotive and mobility technologies, from Capitol Hill to the U.S. Department of Transportation and beyond.
On March 26, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld a preliminary injunction issued by a federal district court in Rhode Island that blocks implementation of a funding freeze directed by the Trump administration. The case concerns a January 27, 2025, directive from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that paused certain federal financial assistance for electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure programs. The directive was initially rescinded on January 28 but was later declared to “remain in full force and effect” in a January 29 post by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
The Rhode Island federal court first issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on January 31, 2025, barring enforcement of the OMB directive. The court ordered that its substance may not be enforced under any other name and instructed agencies to proceed with awards or obligations based on applicable statutes, regulations, and terms. The plaintiffs prevailed on a legal theory that the directive constituted an unlawful impoundment of congressionally appropriated funds and a violation of separation of powers. On March 6, 2025, the judge issued a preliminary injunction extending the block, applicable within the states that brought the challenge.
In a parallel case, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a TRO on February 3, 2025, similarly blocking the federal funding freeze. The court ruled that agencies may not “giv[e] effect” to the January 27 OMB directive and that “open awards previously frozen” must be “immediate[ly]” released. The court found that plaintiffs had shown a substantial likelihood of success on the merits under the Administrative Procedure Act, citing the claim of “arbitrary and capricious” agency action. A preliminary injunction issued on February 25, 2025, extended the block and prohibits the administration from reinstating the freeze using the same memo or a different directive.
These court actions stem from an executive order, “Unleashing American Energy,” signed by President Trump on January 20, 2025. Section 7 of the order terminates the “Green New Deal” and directs all agencies to pause disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). This includes funding for EV charging infrastructure under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program and the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program. The executive order states that no such funds shall be disbursed until both OMB and the assistant to the president for economic policy determine that disbursements align with the administration’s energy policies.
The Trump administration has indicated that it will continue to challenge the court rulings.
U.S. Department of Transportation
On March 10, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced a recission of two Biden-era memorandums that advised state and local agencies receiving funds from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to prioritize highway, road, bridge, and other projects that promoted social justice or climate resiliency goals.
The two memos were issued by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in 2021 and 2023. The February 2023 memo superseded the December 2021 policy memo that advised states to prioritize projects focused on maintaining or repairing existing roadways, or ones that incorporated non-motorized options like pedestrian, bicycle, or transit access, before embarking on new expansion projects. This policy faced opposition from members of Congress who stated that the memo put forth policies that differed from the provisions in the IIJA and did not adhere to congressional intent. The February 2023 memo relaxed some of the directives of the 2021 memo. The 2023 memo stated that “while states are ultimately responsible for deciding how their formula and allocated funding is prioritized,” FHWA remained committed to ensuring progress in “safety, resilience, and equity in the delivery of the Federal-aid Highway Program.”
On April 2, 2025, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee at a hearing titled “Constructing the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill: United States Secretary of Transportation’s Perspective.” During the hearing, the secretary discussed the administration’s priorities for the 2026 Surface Transportation Reauthorization bill. In his opening statement, Secretary Duffy explained that the Department is focused on making travel by sea, rail, and road more efficient and more affordable while raising safety standards, cutting unnecessary red tape, and building the infrastructure that Americans are paying for with their hard-earned tax dollars.
Secretary Duffy also delivered remarks outlining the administration’s transportation priorities at the American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 2025 annual briefing in Washington, DC on February 5, 2025. Secretary Duffy discussed the air traffic disasters in Washington, DC and Philadelphia, PA and stated that USDOT must take a serious look at the safety of U.S. airspace. Secretary Duffy highlighted the three priorities President Trump outlined to him, including (1) fixing the airspace; (2) lowering the average price of passenger vehicles; and (3) building American infrastructure. Secretary Duffy also discussed his desire to improve project timelines, reduce project costs, and reform the permitting process. Finally, he noted his desire to improve public-private partnerships.
On January 28-29, 2025, Secretary Duffy took a series of actions intended to ensure that U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) policies align with the administration’s priorities, including to reaffirm USDOT’s focus on safety, efficiency, economic prosperity, and regulatory reform.
- Rescinding Biden-Harris Administration’s “Woke” Policies. The “Woke Rescission” memo directs secretarial officers and heads of operating administrations to identify and eliminate all Biden-era programs, policies, activities, rules, and orders that promote climate change activism; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives; racial equity; gender identity policies; environmental justice; and other partisan objectives.
- Lowering Costs Through Smarter Policies, Not Political Ideologies. This order is intended to ensure that all USDOT policies, grants, loans, and actions are based on economic principles, positive cost-benefit analyses, and economic growth priorities. The order requires that USDOT’s “grantmaking, lending, policymaking, and rulemaking activities” must be supported by “rigorous cost-benefit requirements and data-driven decisions.” Moreover, the order announced several policy priorities and conditions for DOT-supported programs, such as “user-pay models,” “direct funding to local opportunity zones,” preference for “communities with marriages and birth rates higher than the national average,” prohibiting vaccine and mask mandates, and requiring cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
- Rescinding Greenhouse Gas Measurement Rule. Secretary Duffy approved submission of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to rescind the Biden-Harris administration’s rule requiring state transportation departments to measure and establish declining targets for carbon dioxide emissions on federally supported highways. This rule had been rescinded during the first Trump administration.
- Resetting Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards. On January 28, 2025, Secretary Duffy signed a memorandum directing U.S. Department of Transportation staff to start the process of resetting Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. The memorandum signed by the secretary directs the Office of the General Counsel, the Office of the Undersecretary for Policy, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to immediately initiate a rulemaking to rescind or replace all existing CAFE standards. This directive will implement Executive Order 14148, titled “Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions,” and Executive Order 14154, titled “Unleashing American Energy,” which were issued by President Trump on January 20, 2025.
Other Federal Agencies
On March 20, 2025, following a 60-day pause initiated by the Trump administration, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Final Rule, “Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain: Connected Vehicles,” came into effect. This rule was first published on January 14, 2025. The Final Rule prohibits “covered transactions,” which are the sale or import of connected vehicles with specific pieces of hardware and software, namely vehicle connectivity systems (VCS) and automated driving systems (ADS), with a sufficient nexus to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) or Russia. Importers and/or manufacturers of VCS must submit Declarations of Conformity to BIS before importing VCS hardware or importing or selling completed connected vehicles that incorporate covered software, and those who seek to engage in the prohibited covered transactions must apply for general or specific authorizations to do so.
The Final Rule maintains much of the structure proposed in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (published September 2024), with some alterations, including: (1) the exclusion of vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds—i.e., heavy-duty vehicles; and (2) the addition of U.S. persons who “[integrate] ADS software on a completed connected vehicle for sale in the United States” to the definition of “connected vehicle manufacturer.” The Final Rule explicitly exempts from its transaction controls vehicle sensors, including lidar, radar, and video, along with global navigation satellite systems, satellite radio, and AM/FM radio, and ultrawideband communications used for vehicle access (key fobs).
On March 12, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the agency will reconsider the Model Year 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles regulation (Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards) and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards (GHG Phase 3) for Heavy-Duty Vehicles.
The Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards and GHG Phase 3 rules were finalized on March 20 and March 29, 2024, respectively. The Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards set new standards to reduce air pollutant emissions from light-duty and medium-duty vehicles starting with model year 2027. GHG Phase 3 similarly set stronger standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from heavy-duty (HD) vehicles beginning in model year (MY) 2027. Those standards were applicable to heavy-duty vocational vehicles (such as delivery trucks, refuse haulers, public utility trucks, transit, shuttles, school buses, etc.) and tractors (such as day cabs and sleeper cabs on tractor-trailer trucks).
EPA is also reevaluating other parts of the Biden administration’s “Clean Trucks Plan,” including the 2022 Heavy-Duty Nitrous Oxide (NOx) rule.
On February 6, 2025, the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) National Coordination Office (NCO) within the National Science Foundation (NSF) published a request for information on the Development of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Plan (Plan). According to the notice, the Plan will define the priority policy actions needed to sustain and enhance America's AI dominance, and to ensure that unnecessarily burdensome requirements do not hamper private sector AI innovation, as directed by a presidential executive order on January 23, 2025. OSTP and NITRD NCO are seeking input from the public, including from academia; industry groups; private sector organizations; state, local, and tribal governments; and any other interested parties, on priority actions that should be included in the Plan. Comments were due March 15, 2025, and the agency is now in the process of reviewing responses to inform next steps in Plan development.
On February 4, 2025, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the policy priorities of the EPA’s first 100 days through an initiative titled “Powering the Great American Comeback.” The initiative states that EPA’s five priorities, or “pillars,” are (1) developing the domestic automotive manufacturing industry; (2) investment in AI infrastructure, such as data centers; (3) boosting domestic energy production; (4) reforming the project permitting process through federalism and cross-agency partnerships; and (5) “clear air, land, and water,” alongside contributing to emergency response efforts.
With respect to the domestic auto industry, the initiative states that EPA will aim to “bring back American auto jobs and invest in domestic manufacturing to revitalize a quintessential American industry” and “partner with leaders to streamline and develop smart regulations that will allow for American workers to lead the great comeback of the auto industry.” With respect to permitting, the initiative says that “any business that wants to invest in America should be able to do so without having to face years-long, uncertain, and costly permitting processes that deter them from doing business in our country in the first place.” The initiative states that EPA will work with partners at the state and federal levels to ensure projects are being approved and companies can invest in the U.S.
- Steven Bradbury, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation. On February 20, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee held a hearing to consider the nomination of Steven Bradbury to be U.S. deputy secretary of transportation. During the hearing, Senators Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) and Gary Peters (D-MI) discussed autonomous vehicles (AVs) and other advanced automotive safety technologies. During the hearing, Mr. Bradbury expressed his support for a consistent national framework for the development of AVs. On February 27, the Committee voted (15-13) to advance Mr. Bradbury’s nomination. Mr. Bradbury was confirmed by the Senate on March 11, 2025, by a vote of 51-46.
- Michael Kratsios, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). On February 25, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee convened a hearing to consider Mr. Krastios’ nomination. On March 25, 2025, he was confirmed by the Senate in a 74-25 vote. The OSTP director oversees the development and execution of the nation’s science and technology policy agenda.
- Other U.S. DOT Nominations Pending. There are several nominations for key leadership positions still pending confirmation, including:
- Marc Molinaro, FTA. On March 27, 2025, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing to consider the nomination of Marc Molinaro to be administrator of the Federal Transit Agency (FTA). A date for the committee to vote on his nomination has not been set at the time of publication.
- Michael Rutherford, Department of Transportation. On March 24, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee received Michael Rutherford’s nomination to be an assistant secretary of transportation.
- Derek Barrs, FMCSA. On March 24, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee received Derek Barrs’ nomination to be administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
- Bryan Bedford, FAA. On March 24, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee received Bryan Bedford’s nomination to be administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.
- Sean McMaster, Department of Transportation. On March 10, 2025, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee received Sean McMaster’s nomination to be administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Sean served as deputy chief of staff for the Department in the first Trump administration.
- Seval Oz, Department of Transportation. On March 10, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee received Seval Oz’s nomination to be an assistant secretary of transportation.
- Jonathan Morrison, NHTSA. On February 11, 2025, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee received Jonathan Morrison’s nomination to be administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Mr. Morrison served as chief counsel at NHTSA under the first Trump administration.
At the conclusion of the 2024 state sessions, 35 states and the District of Columbia expressly allow AV testing or deployment. Over the course of legislative sessions in 2025 so far, numerous states have expressed interest in AVs by introducing legislation addressing AV operations. Several states have considered bills that would establish a new, comprehensive framework for AV deployment, including Maryland, Missouri, and New York. Meanwhile, other states have introduced “driver-in” bills that would require a human observer to be physically present in an AV during testing or deployment. Some of these bills would apply to all AV operations, while others would apply only to heavy-duty AV operations. To date, however, no such driver-in bill has been enacted in any state.
The authors would like to thank Autonomous ＆ Connected Mobility Analyst Tess Brennan for her assistance writing this article.
