The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to eliminate $7 billion in solar energy incentives designed to assist low-income households convert to green energy, the New York Times first reported on Tuesday.
The EPA is in the process of sending termination letters to 60 nonprofit groups and state agencies that benefitted from grants given by the Solar for All program, according to individuals who spoke with the outlet on the condition of anonymity.
The program sought to help low- and moderate-income homeowners convert to solar power while also expanding solar initiatives in communities.
The initiative was an element of the Biden administration’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which in turn was part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. The fund received a total of $27 billion, $7 billion of which was allocated to the Solar for All program.
EPA administrator Lee Zeldin called the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund a “gold bar” scheme in March and questioned the program’s integrity.
“The days of ‘throwing gold bars off the Titanic’ are over,” he said. “The well-documented incidents of misconduct, conflicts of interest, and potential fraud raise significant concerns and pose unacceptable risk. I have taken action to terminate these grants riddled with self-dealing and wasteful spending.
“EPA will be an exceptional steward of taxpayer dollars dedicated to our core mission of protecting human health and the environment, not a frivolous spender in the name of ‘climate equity,’ ” Zeldin said.
Michelle Moore, the chief executive of Groundswell, a nonprofit group that received a Solar for All grant, said the cancellation runs counter to the Trump administration’s goals of lowering electricity demand in the wake of ever-expanding AI consumption.
“This country needs all of the electrons that it can get,” Moore said. “This country is short on power. If you want natural gas, the combined-cycle natural gas turbines are backlogged out five to seven years.”
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