The Trump Administration has said it will end the $7 billion Solar for All program, which was meant to help low-income households access affordable solar energy.
Ohio was slated to get around $150,000 from the program, plus a share in another roughly $150,000 designated for the Industrial Heartland Solar Coalition, according to Power a Clean Future Ohio.
Power a Clean Future Ohio Executive Director Joe Flarida said ending the Solar for All program was “reckless and harmful.”
“Right now in Ohio, we are seeing major increases in our electric bills and too many Ohioans simply cannot afford it. Cutting this lifeline is a direct attack on the very families already bearing the brunt of our broken energy system and the insider politics of Washington,” Flarida wrote in a statement.
Locally, the city of Columbus was set to receive about $15.5 million in Solar for All funding. Erin Beck, assistant director of Sustainable Columbus, said $8 million of that money was going to be used for a rooftop solar program for low- and moderate-income city residents.
The city intended to put another $5 million toward a community solar project. Residents who get power from Columbus’ division of power would have been able to sign up to draw energy from an array of solar panels located on city property. That would have allowed residents to use clean energy without putting solar panels on their own homes.
“These projects and programs were important because they would have helped reduce residence bills at a time when energy costs are going up, while also increasing access to clean energy,” Beck said.
Beck said the two solar programs would have reached about 2,000 residents.
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The remainder of the city’s funding would have been used for administration costs, as well as workforce development.
“These were going to be big job opportunities,” Beck said.
Five Ohio mayors, including Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther, asked the Trump administration to preserve the program in a joint statement.
“Electricity bills and broader cost of living expenses are rising, and the Trump Administration is cutting a program that would save participating Ohio households, on average, nearly $400 per year on their utility bills. Terminating Solar for All funding, including grants already awarded, is harmful,” the statement reads.
Beck said even without Solar for All Funding, Columbus remains committed to its clean energy goals. She said the city will continue its Clean Energy Columbus aggregation program that provides clean energy from Ohio-based solar. The city also partners with Solar United Neighbors, which helps residents install rooftop solar panels.
“Increasing access to clean energy really is about making sure we have a healthy and prosperous community here in Columbus,” Beck said. “It is part of our climate action plan goals and helps us move towards those community goals that we have for the climate action plans.”
