--- title: "Tesla Begs Biden for Nearly $100 Million to Build Semi-Truck Charging Stations" description: "It looks like Elon Musk is once again ignoring his politics in search of a government handout — this time for Tesla's electric semi-trucks." date: "2023-08-02" modified: "2023-08-02" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-semi-chargers-100-million" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "tesla" - "tesla semi" - "the digest" --- # Tesla Begs Biden for Nearly $100 Million to Build Semi-Truck Charging Stations ![It looks like Elon Musk is once again ignoring his politics in search of a government handout — this time for Tesla's electric semi-trucks.]() *\Image: Veronique Dupont via Getty / Futurism\* ## Pilot Onwards It looks like Elon Musk is once again conveniently ignoring his [purported opposition to government handouts]() — this time looking to get on the federal dole for infrastructure to support Tesla's electric semi-trucks. According to emails [reviewed by *Bloomberg*](), the electric vehicle maker is asking the government for a cool $97 million to build nine electric charging stations for its forthcoming semi-trucks — currently still in "[pilot production]()" for a handful of clients — as it seeks to create a lengthy charging network running from South Texas to Northern California. In those emails, Tesla representatives told officials from the US Department of Transportation that the proposed 750-mile network would qualify for grants from the Biden Administration's sweeping [bipartisan infrastructure initiative]() that provides, among other things, companies with tax incentives to build green transit alternatives. When *Bloomberg* reached out to the USDOT for comment about the Tesla proposals, a representative said only that the agency is "currently reviewing applications" and will make announcements about them "later this year." ## Uncle Sam'd Interestingly, Tesla didn't undertake this latest appeal for government money alone. A representative from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, a regulatory agency tasked with improving air quality in Los Angeles, confirmed that it had applied on behalf of the Musk-owned company. That same representative said that Tesla will be putting up $24 million of its own dollars toward the endeavor as well. While [green infrastructure does indeed deserve government stimulus](), it's far from the first time a Musk company has asked for money from Uncle Sam — or gotten it, for that matter. Last year, for instance, California Gov. Gavin Newsom boasted that the Golden State had subsidized Tesla's success, and when the [*San Francisco Chronicle* investigated the claim](), it found that it had, to the tune of a whopping $3.2 billion — and that's just on the state level. Paired with the [$15.3 billion SpaceX]() has gotten from government contracts since 2003, and you've got a major contradiction to [Musk's personal disdain for "government-funded" endeavors]() — but if there wasn't some [major point of irony](), would it even be a Musk story? **More on Tesla:** [*Poll Finds That Tesla Drivers Increasingly Can't Stand Elon Musk*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()