Senate Democrats are demanding the Trump administration revive $7.5 billion in previously awarded funding for clean energy projects, after it conceded in court documents that the grants were canceled “based solely” on a project’s location in a state that did not vote for Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
“Now that court documents have confirmed what we knew to be true, we write to demand that you restore previously awarded funding that the Trump administration has weaponized in an attempt to punish perceived political enemies,” according to a letter led by Senate Energy and Natural Resources ranking member Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Appropriations ranking member Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who were joined by 37 colleagues, including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
The letter comes as the Trump administration has sought to undo Biden-era funding for clean energy projects and as it pushes for further regulatory changes that would put political appointees in charge of approving future grants.
The Department of Energy last fall said it was terminating funding for more than 200 projects — an announcement that landed shortly after White House budget director Russ Vought promised that the administration would cancel “Green New Scam funding” in 16 states that all voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election. DOE said at the time the projects were not economic and would not provide a positive return on investment of taxpayer dollars.
