Trump admin cancels $156M grant to help Floridians afford solar panels

Emily L. Mahoney, Tampa Bay Times on Aug 8, 2025

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The federal government has revoked a $156 million grant received by three Florida nonprofits to help lower-income residents afford solar panels.

More than 800 Floridians had already applied for these funds, at least a quarter of which had been pre-qualified, said Duanne Andrade, executive director of the Solar and Energy Loan Fund, one of the nonprofits. Eligible applicants would have been able to get grants, subsidies or low-cost financing to help pay for solar panels.

The organizations had delayed approving applications until they received clarity on the future of the program.

This cancellation is removing one more tool for households that can least afford rising electricity costs, Andrade said, not to mention how added jobs would’ve benefitted the state economy.

“These funds are being taken away from Floridians,” she said. “If you’re not a low-income household, maybe you’re invested in solar companies. Or maybe you have people that need to work and you’re going to put people to work in Florida. This (was) an investment in Florida.”

In addition to the Solar and Energy Loan Fund, the two other Florida nonprofits that received the grant were Solar United Neighbors, a solar organizing group, and The Nature Conservancy in Florida, an environmental group. They jointly applied for the federal money after learning Florida was one of the few state governments that didn’t apply.

The cancellation is part of a national rollback of the Solar For All program, which included similar grants throughout the country.

The termination letter from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which the Florida groups received Thursday night and shared with the Tampa Bay Times, cites the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

“Congress has made its intent clear ... that the SFA (Solar for All) program is no longer to operate,” it reads.

That law also moved up the expiration date of the 30% tax credit for homeowners who install rooftop solar panels to the end of this year. That’s created a rush of people trying to buy panels before the program ends, local business owners have said.

One of those business owners, Bill Johnson, who runs solar company Brilliant Harvest in Sarasota, said Friday that the cancellation of the $156 million grant was another blow to the industry. He’s also the president of the statewide solar lobbying group.

“Now more than ever, Floridians need clean, affordable solar power and the added resiliency it provides during storms,” Johnson said in a statement. “Withdrawing this funding is a setback for our economy, our workforce, and our state’s ability to strengthen its energy security.”