A coalition of labour unions, nonprofits and solar companies has filed suit challenging the Trump administration’s decision to rescind $7bn in grants awarded under the Solar for All programme.
The complaint, lodged in federal court in Rhode Island, argues that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its administrator, Lee Zeldin, unlawfully revoked grants that had already been awarded to states, tribes and nonprofits.
Zeldin announced in July that this would be part of the Trump administration’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” spending cuts, which seek to end many Biden-era renewable initiatives to “level the playing field” for fossil fuels.
The plaintiffs include the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, the Rhode Island Centre for Justice, Solar United Neighbours, and several solar installers and community organisations.
Serving households
Having been part of the previous President Joe Biden’s $27bn “green bank” (the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund), the Solar for All programme was established during the passing of a climate law in 2022.
According to the lawsuit, it was designed to serve over 900,000 households in lower-income communities.
Additionally, it was projected to save recipients about $400 annually on electricity bills while reducing or avoiding more than 30m metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in greenhouse gas emissions.
The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) briefly notes that across the country, Solar for All “is expected to save an estimated $350m annually on energy bills and generate 200,000 new jobs.”
“This program would provide families with low incomes access to clean, affordable solar power: energy that lowers bills, improves air quality, and keeps people safer during extreme heat,” Kate Sinding Daly, Senior Vice President for Law and Policy for the CLF, commented in a statement.
“Stripping those benefits away is unlawful and betrays communities.”
In response, the EPA has declined to comment on pending litigation.
Rescinding the programme
In a previous social media statement from July, Zeldin had defended the cancellation by asserting that “the bottom line is this: EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive.”
Plaintiffs contend that stripping away the grants would deprive communities of access to clean energy, worsen energy insecurity, and stall job growth in the renewable energy sector.
“The Trump administration’s rollback of the Solar for All program is a shameless attempt to prop up fossil fuel companies at the expense of families,” Daly added.
The lawsuit seeks a judicial order to reinstate Solar for All and restore its funding; it can be read here.
