Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

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Solar

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1754612207630cropped-photo-collage.png.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Pexels; Mandel Ngan, AFP/file</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>WASHINGTON, United States — President Donald Trump&#x27;s administration on Thursday moved to kill a $7 billion program designed to bring rooftop solar to low-income and disadvantaged communities across the United States.</p><p>The Solar For All grant program was created under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, former president Joe Biden&#x27;s landmark climate legislation.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2025/8/5/net-metering-gains-ground-as-more-households-install-solar-1622">Net metering gains ground as more households install solar</a></div><p>Sixty recipients -- a mix of state agencies and nonprofits -- had already been selected across both Democratic-led and Republican-led states. The initiative aimed to help more than 900,000 households slash their electricity bills by hundreds of dollars a year.</p><p>In a video posted to X, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin said last month&#x27;s &quot;Big Beautiful Act&quot; repealed the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, under which Solar For All was housed. He said he was now obligated to follow the law.</p><p>Zeldin alleged -- without elaboration -- that the program&#x27;s funds were being siphoned off by the administrative costs of &quot;middlemen,&quot; calling the setup a &quot;grift.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/business/01/01/24/worlds-largest-solar-project-breaks-ground-in-ph-says-spnec">&#x27;World’s largest solar project’ breaks ground in PH, says SPNEC</a></div><p>He also criticized its exemption from requirements to buy American goods, claiming it amounted to &quot;great news for China.&quot;</p><p>Of the $7 billion obligated so far, just $53 million has been spent, according to an analysis by research firm Atlas Public Policy.</p><p>Tom Taylor, a senior policy analyst at Atlas, told AFP there had been a general understanding that once contracts were signed, obligated funds couldn&#x27;t be clawed back. </p><p>&quot;But the Trump administration is now testing that theory,&quot; he said.</p><p>Environmental groups erupted in anger.</p><p>&quot;President Trump pledged to cut energy bills in half, but once again his administration is trying to make it more expensive to keep your home cool or the lights on,&quot; said Adam Kent, director of green finance at the Natural Resources Defense Council.</p><p>Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders accused Trump of acting to protect fossil fuel interests. </p><p>&quot;Donald Trump wants to illegally kill this program to protect the obscene profits of his friends in the oil and gas industry,&quot; he said in a statement, vowing to &quot;fight back to preserve this enormously important program.&quot;</p><p>The administration has already worked with Congress to repeal tax credits for wind and solar, tightened restrictions on federal leases for renewable energy projects, and rescinded designated offshore wind areas.</p><p>It has also proposed ending regulations on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and vehicles -- and released a report suggesting climate change could be beneficial.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kzwXHckhW9M?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders accused US President Donald Trump of acting to protect fossil fuel interests.</p>

Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders accused US President Donald Trump of acting to protect fossil fuel interests.

Trump moves to kill $7 billion in solar panel grants

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Trump moves to kill $7 billion in solar panel grants

Agence France-Presse

Published Aug 08, 2025 08:20 AM PHT

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