Federal judge restores $7 billion to the Solar for All program

On September 18, a federal judge in the United States struck down the cancellation of Solar for All, a $7 billion program, after concluding that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acted without legal authority when it terminated it in August 2025. District Judge Mary S. McElroy, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, granted summary judgment to the plaintiffs and set aside the program's rescission.

Solar for All was created in 2022 within the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund of the Inflation Reduction Act, under Section 134 of the Clean Air Act. In April 2024 the EPA selected 60 primary recipients, among them state energy offices, territories, tribal governments and nonprofit organizations, which distribute the capital to community installers and developers. The agency obligated the funds before a September 2024 deadline, according to Utility Dive. The program was terminated in August 2025, after the passage of the federal spending law known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. For the region, the case defines whether an agency can rescind money already committed by Congress.

The EPA projected that the $7 billion would deploy more than 4 GW of distributed solar capacity, reach more than 900,000 households and generate savings of close to $350 million a year, more than $8 billion over 25 years. The rules require that between 80% and 85% of the funds go to direct financial assistance, and subject projects to Davis-Bacon wage standards and Build America, Buy America sourcing requirements. The agency estimated about 200,000 construction and technician jobs over five years. Only $53 million had been disbursed before the freeze, according to pv magazine, which cites the firm Atlas Public Policy. Nick Torrey, a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center, said the court ruled that Congress intended the program to continue and that the EPA broke the law by terminating it.

The EPA said it is reviewing the decision and weighing appeal options, according to Canary Media. The direct grant recipients, who are not parties to this lawsuit, must pursue their claims through the Court of Federal Claims. A parallel ruling on $20 billion from the same fund, reported by the same outlet, is still working its way through the courts.

This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.