The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is drafting termination letters that could claw back $7 billion in Solar for All funding nationwide, including about $30 million designated for Wyoming.
The EPA plans to notify the 60 grant recipients under the Solar for All program in 49 states, informing them that their awards have been terminated, according to those close to the program who spoke to Cowboy State Daily.
Hilary Shohoney, chief of staff at the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, oversees Wyoming's Solar for All grant and is actively recruiting a Wyoming-based program manager. She also supervises Solar for All projects in Montana and her home state of Idaho.
Shohoney said the Solar for All money is carefully accounted for as it’s applied to helping families reduce their power bills by installing residential solar.
"We're really hopeful that it will continue," Shohoney said, who remains optimistic that the allocated money is legally protected from being rescinded and will be spent on Solar for All projects. "We think it's going to make a big impact in these states.
“I grew up in Idaho, so for me, it's near and dear to my heart that we have to do this program."
$300,000 Spent So Far
Bonneville Environmental Foundation, based in Portland, Oregon, administers Wyoming's portion of the funding after the state chose not to apply directly. The foundation has spent about $300,000 of Wyoming's allocation so far.
"Most of the work that's been done in Wyoming so far has been hiring staff," Shohoney said. "So, we've been hiring staff to lead the program in the state, and we have been trying to build up what's called a governance body."
A portion of Wyoming’s funds is committed specifically to tribal communities, particularly on the Wind River Reservation, home to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes.
"At this moment, what we're doing is reaching out to our congressional delegations who have so far been incredibly supportive of the program and excited to see these funds deployed in their states," Shohoney said. "We're just asking them to stand up to the OMB (Office of Management and Budget) and ask them to please not terminate the program because we think it'll make a big impact."
Shohoney disputes claims that Solar for All represents wasteful spending.
"We and organizations like the Bonneville Environmental Foundation have spent the last three years applying for and getting everything together to make these grants work in these states, including gathering support from community-based organizations and others on the ground to show that there was a desire for us to do this work," she said.
"I would say this isn't wasteful spending. We're also, you know, part of the president's agenda is to unleash American energy, and I think that this is very clearly a part of that,” she said.
Unleashed
In an email to Solar for All participants, the Bonneville Environmental Foundation stated it has not received any official notice from the EPA.
“We will continue to monitor the situation closely,” the Foundation wrote in its email. “These projects will also create good-paying local jobs in construction, electrical work and maintenance while helping rural communities generate their own power.”
The Montana Renewable Energy Association also issued a statement last week, linking its work to the Trump administration’s emphasis on energy independence.
"Eliminating this energy affordability policy is contradictory to the American energy dominance our country is aiming for,” according to the MREA. “The purpose of the Solar for All program couldn’t be more clear: increase domestic power production, and make energy more affordable for low-income households.
“You’d be hard pressed to find someone on either side of the aisle who disagrees with those goals."
Wasteful Spending?
On the other side of this debate is EPA Region 8 Administrator Cyrus Western, a former Wyoming legislator from Sheridan, who defended the potential clawback.
"Administrator Zeldin is laser focused on ensuring taxpayer dollars are managed properly, and this includes going after wasteful spending conducted by the previous administration," Western told Cowboy State Daily.
The top EPA administrator, Lee Zeldin, has already sought to rescind $20 billion in separate grants under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which includes Solar for All.
Zeldin has called the broader greenhouse gas reduction fund a wasteful "gold bars" scheme, referencing a viral video where an EPA program official bragged about the spending to an undercover reporter, according to news reports earlier this year.
With the Solar for All program launching in 2024, most of the money has yet to be spent.
Legal Battle
Policy analyst Annabelle Rosser with Atlas Public Policy, a climate and energy research firm based in Washington, D.C., said the legal fight over the clawbacks could be complicated.
"Typically, once funding is obligated, it's like contractually obligated," Rosser said. "And so it's going to be unusual for there to be a clawback of that. So that's why people are expecting that this would cause a pretty complicated legal battle."
In addition to helping low- and moderate-income homeowners install residential solar, the money also can be used to support community solar projects.
Business Continues
Wyoming’s solar industry may not be devastated by the potential loss of federal grants.
Devon Brown, owner of The Solar Guys, which has an office in Casper, said his business will continue serving customers regardless.
"It doesn't impact us as a company," Brown told Cowboy State Daily. "We still get pretty good pricing for the material, and we still make it work for customers."
Brown noted customers are rushing to take advantage of the 30% federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) before it expires in 2025. The ITC allows solar customers to receive 30% of their total system cost as a tax credit.
"People are acting a little bit more quicker for that 30% ITC credit before it goes out at the end of the year," Brown explained.
Systems must be installed and operational by Dec. 31 to qualify.
Congress’s budget reconciliation legislation eliminates the ITC at the end of 2025, ending a decade-long incentive.
Most of Brown’s customers finance their systems, which typically cost $30,000 to $40,000 before tax credits.
"About 90% of customers have to finance. No one has $30,000 to $40,000 lying around unless they're pretty wealthy and upper middle class," Brown said. "We don't emphasize the tax credit. A lot of solar companies do because they're like, 'Oh, it's so cheap to get solar.'
“Well here's the thing: It's already cheap to get solar. You just have to work with the right company that's transparent with their numbers."
Brown said his approach focuses on long-term value rather than temporary incentives.
"I don't think it should sway a customer to get solar or not," he said about the tax credit. "I really personally think the agenda for someone to get solar needs to be energy independence.
“At the end of the day, we've worked over the course of three and a half years, our price point has gone down significantly."
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
