Rewiring America is a left-of-center nonprofit organization that advocates for a mass reorganization of the United States economy to be less reliant on natural energy sources, such as oil and gas, and replace them with green energy sources. ¹ In February 2025, the Second Trump Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) froze a promised $2 billion grant to Power Forward Communities, a coalition led by Rewiring America that had received the grant from the EPA under the Biden Administration in 2024. ²

Rewiring America began as a project of the Windward Fund, an environmentalist nonprofit managed by philanthropic firm Arabella Advisors. ^{3 4} As of 2023, the organization is an independent nonprofit organization. ⁵

Founding and History

Rewiring America was founded in 2020 by Saul Griffith and Alex Laskey. The organization works to promote the ideas laid out in the book Griffith coauthored, which was also named Rewiring America. Griffith argues that the key to reducing carbon emissions is to essentially abolish all forms of energy other than renewable powered electricity. Griffith urges the government to undertake a society-wide mobilization that will triple American energy production by approaching the situation with an attitude of total war, similar to U.S. industrial mobilization during World War II. ⁶

On March 14, 2023, former Democratic candidate for Georgia governor Stacey Abrams announced that she would be joining Rewiring America as its senior counsel. In a statement, Abrams claimed she was “excited to join Rewiring America to share the benefits of electrification and ensure families get their fair share. I look forward to working together as we build the tools that will transform everyday Americans from energy consumers to energy moguls in their own communities.”  ⁷ Rewiring America co-founder and CEO Ari Matusiak also commented, “She’s a brilliant and visionary organizer who will accelerate our work and expand the audience for the benefits of electrification — the most equity-centered climate strategy we have.” ⁷

In 2023, Rewiring America officially filed as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It reported $621,317 in total revenue to the IRS, that it was a “start-up year,” and that it was undergoing a “‘transition’ process from its fiscal sponsor.” ^[1] Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Part I, Line 12.[/note] ⁸ In April 2024, it was announced that Power Forward Communities, an energy advocacy coalition of which Rewiring America is a member, was awarded a $2 billion grant from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden Administration for the purpose of funding home improvement projects towards transitioning conventional energy sources like natural gas furnaces or projects to adopting weather-dependent energy such as solar panels. ^{9 10}

Finances

Rewiring America was previously a project of the Windward Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered in Washington, D.C. As a project, it did not originally file its own tax returns with the IRS and its funds were controlled by the Windward Fund. In October 2020, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund reported a $300,000 grant to the Windward Fund for Rewiring America. ¹¹

According to its 2021 990 tax form, the Sergey Brin Family Foundation, the foundation for Google co-founder Sergey Brin, provided a grant worth roughly $4,503,533 to Arabella Advisors-managed nonprofit Windward Foundation for the purpose of, “General Operating Support For Rewiring America.” ¹²

As of 2023, Rewiring America is registered as an independent nonprofit organization. That year, it reported $621,317 in total contributions, and it received a $1 million grant from Building Decarbonization Coalition, according to its tax returns. ^{13 14} Rewiring America also reported $267,503 in total expenses, including $187,500 in “recruitment services” of prospective employees and $80,000 in consulting services that it reported were necessary for the joining of “a coalition” and in pursuit of “a grant” under the Inflation Reduction Act. ^{15 8 16}

Priority Issues

Rewiring America promotes a new federal government program that would reach into every aspect of American life to reduce carbon emissions. The organization envisions massive government spending to incentivize communities to replace older appliances and equipment with new more energy efficient ones, and government financing and rebates to subsidize electric updates for lower earning households. It also advocates the formation of a national standard for electrification projects. ¹⁷

Saul Griffith claimed this could only be achieved through government mandates and direct involvement and control of industry. He compared such steps to the government mandates during the Great Depression of the 1930’s as well as the mobilization of production during World War II in the 1940’s. ¹⁸

Griffith has noted elsewhere that he is an engineer, not an economist, but implies that because of the “climate emergency,” engineers, rather than economists, should be consulted when formulating policies, such as government involvement in “climate loans”. ¹⁹

The group is a founder of Power Forward Communities, a coalition of nonprofits advocating for policy to improve local communities including decarbonizing and a focus on clean energy usage in low-income and disadvantaged communities. Other founders include Enterprise Community Partners, Habitat for Humanity International, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), and United Way Worldwide. Other founders include Habitat for Humanity International, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), and United Way Worldwide. ²⁰ In April 2024, Power Forward Communities announced it had received a $2 billion grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to be paid over a seven-year period, to advocate for the “decarbonization of homes” as well as changing “the marketplace for heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, induction stoves, solar panels, home battery systems, EV chargers, and wiring and weatherization upgrades that support them.” ^{21 22}

Second Trump Administration

In May 2025, Rewiring America published an open letter by its president and CEO Ari Matusiak announcing that it had to lay off 28 percent of its staff, consisting of 36 employees. The letter reports that the layoffs came after the Second Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision to freeze funding that included its promised $2 billion, seven-year grant received by Power Forward Communities in 2024. The open letter also claimed that the group had been “subjected to defamatory and baseless attacks” regarding the nature of the frozen grant. ^{23 24}

In February 2025, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) officials identified the $2 billion grant received by Power Forward Communities as “waste” and “abuse,” according to the Washington Free Beacon. Zeldin also reported that it was found “extremely concerning” that the grant was given to an organization with only $100 in revenue and “no experience.” He also reported that the funding was coincidentally “parked” at an outside financial institution following the results of the 2024 presidential election, limiting the federal government’s ability to oversee the funding. Additionally, Zeldin and other critics speculate that organizations such as Power Forward Communities and Rewiring America were created solely to take advantage of the funding of environmentalist initiatives of the Biden administration and its EPA. ²

Leadership

Ari Matusiak is the co-founder, President, and CEO of Rewiring America. He is also the founder and co-chair of Power Forward Communities, a founding partner of climate consulting firm PVG, a co-founder and chair of healthcare advocacy group Young Invincibles, and from 2011-2014 was the special assistant to the president and director of private sector engagement for the Obama Administration. ²⁵

Adam Zurofsky was the former executive director of Rewiring America. He previously worked as the director of state policy and agency management for New York State. He was also previously the deputy secretary for energy and finance in New York State. He teaches climate policy at Columbia University. ^{26 25}

Saul Griffith is the co-founder of Rewiring America. He was previously the founder and chief scientist for research lab Otherlab, which had previously worked with several government agencieis including NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. ²⁶ Medium posted an op-ed written by Griffith in September 2020 in which he discussed Rewiring America’s founding as well as steps to ensure low costs of energy. He claimed,

“First, we have to rewrite the federal, state, and local rules and regulations that were created for the fossil-fueled world and are preventing the U.S. from having the cheapest electricity ever. Then, we have to finance our transition to a zero-carbon energy system with a low-interest “climate loan.’’ We have precedents and mechanisms for doing this; the U.S. pioneered public-private financing in the past that can help us get the job done today.” ²⁷

Alex Laskey is a co-founder and board chair of Rewire America. He was previously the founder and president of Opower, a software company that worked with the utility industry. The company was later purchased by Oracle. He is also a board member of Advanced Energy Economy, a left-of-center environmentalist group. He has also worked with a number of environmentalist groups including The Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land, and the League of Conservation Voters. ^{28 29 25}

Camila Thorndike previously worked in several senior positions within Rewiring America over a two-year period including as the senior director of public engagement. She previously worked for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) as a legislative aide on climate-related proposals as well as several climate-related groups including the Sunrise Movement. In September 2024, it was announced that Thorndike would be joining the 2024 presidential campaign of then-Vice President Kamala Harris as its Climate Engagement Director. ^{30 31}

1. “About Us.” Rewiring America, Accessed June 12, 2025. https://www.rewiringamerica.org/about-us
2. Catenacci, Thomas. “DOGE Finds $2 Billion in Taxpayer Funds Earmarked for Stacey Abrams-Linked Group.” Washington Free Beacon. February 19, 2025. https://freebeacon.com/trump-administration/billions-doge-found-parked-at-bank-earmarked-for-stacey-abrams-backed-green-group/.
3. Walter, Scott. “Inside the Left’s Web of ‘Dark Money.’” Capital Research Center. Capital Research Center, October 26, 2020. https://capitalresearch.org/article/inside-the-lefts-web-of-dark-money/.
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5. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Part I.
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7. “Stacey Abrams Joins Rewiring America as Senior Counsel.” Rewiring America, March 14, 2023. https://www.rewiringamerica.org/press-release/stacey-abrams-joins-rewiring-america-as-senior-counsel
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11. Windward Fund Grant for Rewiring America. Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Accessed March 23, 2021. Original URL: https://www.rbf.org/grantees/windward-fund. Archived URL: https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2021/03/Rockefeller-Brothers-grant-to-Rewiring-America.-03.21.pdf
12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Sergey Brin Family Foundation. 2021. Part XIV. Line 3. Archived: https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/472107200/202243199349103084/IRS990PF
13. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Part I, Line 12.
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15. ^[1] Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Part I, Line 18.
16. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Schedule O.
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18. Roberts, David. “How to Drive Fossil Fuels out of the US Economy, Quickly.” Vox, August 6, 2020. Accessed May 3, 2021. https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/21349200/climate-change-fossil-fuels-rewiring-america-electrify.
19. Griffith, Saul. “SOLVING CLIMATE CHANGE WITH A LOAN.” Medium, February 6, 2020. Accessed May 3, 2021. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/solving-climate-change-with-a-loan-d1aac4b8259a.
20. Power Forward Communities, Accessed June 20, 2024. https://powerforwardcommunities.org/
21. Braun, Ken. “Low-Quality Energy for the LIDACs and $21.8 Billion in Waste from the EPA.” Capital Research Center, January 16, 2025. https://capitalresearch.org/article/low-quality-energy-for-the-lidacs-and-21-8-billion-in-waste-from-the-epa/
22. “Grant to Power Forward Communities, Inc.” USA Spending, Accessed April 25, 2025. https://www.usaspending.gov/award/ASST_NON_84096001_6800/
23. Fischer, Anne. “Rewiring America Cuts Back Employment Under EPA Freeze.” PV Magazine. May 9, 2025. https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/05/09/rewiring-america-cuts-back-employment-under-epa-freeze/.
24. Matusiak, Ari. “An Announcement from Rewiring America CEO.” Rewiring America. May 8, 2025. https://www.rewiringamerica.org/newsroom/press-releases/ceo-letter.
25. “Meet the Leadership Team.” Rewiring America, Accessed June 12, 2025. https://www.rewiringamerica.org/about-us/meet-the-team
26. Rewiring America. “Our Team.” Accessed May 3, 2021. https://www.rewiringamerica.org/our-team.
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28. “Alex Laskey.” Alliance to Save Energy, October 26, 2017. https://www.ase.org/biography/alex-laskey.
29. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Rewiring America Inc. 2023. Part VII, Section A.
30. Catenacci, Thomas. “Kamala Harris Hires Top Official From Climate Group Behind Gas Stove Crackdown.” Washington Free Beacon, September 5, 2024. https://freebeacon.com/elections/kamala-harris-hires-top-official-from-climate-group-behind-gas-stove-crackdown/
31. Helfand-Rogers, Candice. “Harris Campaign Appoints New Climate Engagement Director.” The Story Exchange, September 5, 2024. https://thestoryexchange.org/harris-campaign-appoints-new-climate-engagement-director/