Solar for All is a federal grant program established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden administration to provide solar devices to low-income households. Announced in April 2024, it was projected to cost at least $7 billion. ¹

Background

Solar for All is a federal grant program established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden administration intended to deliver solar power devices to “more than 900,000 low-income and disadvantaged households.”  ¹ The program was part of then-President Joe Biden’s “Investing in America” plan. ¹

Announced on April 22, 2024 (or Earth Day), it also included a list of roughly 60 recipients that would be receiving $7 billion in total grant funding intended for states, territories, municipalities, Native American tribal governments, and nonprofit groups to develop solar energy-related programs. The funds for the program were taken from those made available by the Biden administration-backed Inflation Reduction Act, which formed the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to allot $27 billion in available grant money. ¹

Grantmaking

During the program’s announcement, a list of 60 entities was also released that had been assessed by several government agencies including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Defense (DoD). The winners were scheduled to begin disbursing funds in the fall and winter of 2024. ¹

According to the EPA’s website, recipients of the grants included local offices within the states of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, Vermont, Alaska, Oregon, Washington, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Indiana, New Mexico, Louisia, Missouri, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Hawaii, California, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. Other jurisdictions included Washington, D.C, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. ²

Organizations that received grants included the Groundswell Fund, Growth Opportunity Partners, the Clean Energy Fund of Texas, the Oweesta Corporation, and GRID Alternatives. ^{2 3 4} “Solar for All.” Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dep/programs-and-services/energy-programs-office/financial-options/energy-accelerator-program/solar-for-all.html.[/note]

Trump Administration

On January 30, 2025, following the start of the second Trump administration, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was directed to inform the recipients that “ all funding actions related to” the Solar for All program and other climate-related programs were frozen until further notice. ⁵

1. “Biden-Harris Administration Announces $7 Billion Solar for All Grants to Deliver Residential Solar, Saving Low-Income Americans $350 Million Annually and Advancing Environmental Justice Across America.” Environmental Protection Agency, April 22, 2024. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/biden-harris-administration-announces-7-billion-solar-all-grants-deliver-residential.
2. “Solar for All.” Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/solar-all.
3. “Solar For All – North Carolina’s Solar for All Program: EnergizeNC.” North Carolina Environmental Quality. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.deq.nc.gov/energy-climate/state-energy-office/inflation-reduction-act/solar-all.
4. “Illinois Solar for All.” Illinois Solar for All. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.illinoissfa.com/.
5. Chemnick, Jean. “EPA Cuts off IRA solar money already under contract.” E&E News – by POLITICO, January 30, 2025. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.eenews.net/articles/epa-cuts-off-ira-solar-money-already-under-contract/.