As EPA cut grants for solar, Gov. Healey urged they remain: ‘Affordability isn’t controversial’
Editor's note: This story has been updated to state the Environmental Protection Agency moved to cancel the Solar for All program Thursday afternoon.
The Healey administration and the state's U.S. senators urged the Environmental Protection Agency Thursday morning not to cancel a $7 billion grant program intended to place solar with low income households across the nation.
It was for naught. EPA administrator Lee Zeldin announced on social media Thursday afternoon the administration was ending the program because the passage of the budget reconciliation bill in July eliminated its authority to run the program.
"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," Zeldin wrote.
Massachusetts was set to receive $156 million under the EPA's Solar for All program, a program that would provide zero-interest loans, solar panels at public housing and fund workforce training, all with focus on historically underserved communities.
Solar for All, which the Biden administration announced last year as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, was scheduled to begin operating in Massachusetts in a few weeks, the Healey administration said.
Ahead of the announced cuts, Healey's office said the funding was set to create 3,000 jobs and provide energy-bill-lowering solar for more than 29,000 households in the state. Further, it said the move would be illegal.
"Solar is the fastest and cheapest way to bring affordable energy into Massachusetts," Healey said in a statement Thursday morning. "Affordability isn't controversial – that's why states like Texas and Florida are building so much solar. And that's why my administration has been working hard to deliver more affordable solar to our residents and businesses through new incentives and programs like Solar for All."
The EPA press office said Thursday morning the agency had not yet made a decision about the grant. Rather, it said because of the passage of the budget reconciliation bill, it was evaluating how to fully implement Congress' intent.
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, a Democrat, said states with Republican senators and governors are slated to receive $4.6 billion through the Solar for All program.
"The Solar for All program means lower electric bills for all," Markey said in a statement. "Any attempts to terminate these legally binding contracts would be an attack on American households, who are already facing skyrocketing energy costs and begging for relief, not political retribution."
Healey's office said the program would boost the state's solar capacity by 125 megawatts and touted the effect solar generation already has on the state. On April 20, solar arrays supplied 55% of electricity across the grid in New England, Healey's office said. It said local solar relieves stress on the grid's transmission and distribution infrastructure.
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, said in a statement that she fought for the funding, adding that "canceling it would be reckless and further proof that the Trump administration doesn't care about lowering costs."
A Massachusetts household that switches to solar saves about $2,400 a year, but low-income residents have typically not seen those savings. Low-income residents use the state's main solar incentive program at a rate of 6%, according to an overview of the Solar for All program published by the state.
Massachusetts' program would place solar arrays at public housing authorities, for instance, as long as the installation delivered at least 20% in savings to tenants. Its funding would also go towards creating community solar projects.
The Solar for All program aimed to facilitate no-interest loans with local banks and credit unions and offer technical assistance to place solar on homes where residents have an income under 80% of the area median income, the overview said.
About 60 states, nonprofits and tribes received funds as part of Solar for All. Altogether, the funding was set to connect solar with 900,000 households across the nation, according to the Biden administration.
One nonprofit based in Hartford, Connecticut, received almost $250 million to work with rural communities across 46 states, including Massachusetts, according to the EPA.
Inclusive Prosperity Capital announced on Earth Day 2024 that the EPA awarded it part of the Solar for All funds. The CEO of Inclusive Prosperity Capital, Kerry O'Neill, said in a statement at the time that the nonprofit would use the funds with a coalition "to build a movement of community-based solar developers who are committed to providing significant benefits to low-income and disadvantaged communities."
The nonprofit did not immediately provide comment when asked about its work in Massachusetts.
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