AG Ford sues feds over $150M in low-income solar funds

Following a drawn-out back-and-forth between Nevada’s clean energy advocates and the Trump administration, the state’s chief legal officer has stepped in.

Alongside representatives from 22 other states that experienced funding cuts, as well as the District of Columbia, Attorney General Aaron Ford filed a lawsuit last week in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in hopes of recovering a $155.7 million grant awarded through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Solar for All program.

According to Ford, more than $150 million of that grant had not been disbursed when the EPA terminated it in August.

“President Trump has tried to illegally claw back funds from Nevada after hardworking residents of our state have put in the work to address our energy needs,” Ford said in a Thursday statement. “The president would see Nevadans left high and dry after they committed time and resources to make our state a model of solar energy.”

All told, the $7 billion Solar For All program would have brought solar energy to more than 900,000 households considered to be low-income or historically disadvantaged.

In Nevada, the funding was slated to bring solar to both affordable housing and single-family homes, as well as community solar projects that would have been available for low-income households, including renters. Advocates estimated the funds would have brought lower power bills to 50,000 Nevadans and that demand for solar would have generated roughly 1,000 jobs.

The EPA declined to comment on Monday, but administrator Lee Zeldin said in an August social media post, at the time of rescission, that the agency was “committed to the rule of law and being a good steward of taxpayer dollars.”

Nevada nonprofit joins lawsuit

The agency had bestowed the award to the Nevada Clean Energy Fund, which joined the lawsuit as a plaintiff and the leaders of which have been outspoken about what it considers a breach of contractual obligation.

Kirsten Stasio, the nonprofit’s CEO, said in a statement Monday that it signed on to “protect the commitments made to Nevada and to stand up for the communities that are counting on this federal investment.”

“Our focus remains unchanged — lowering energy costs, expanding clean energy access and delivering lasting benefits for Nevadans,” she said.

The EPA’s decision to terminate the program came after Congress passed the omnibus spending bill, referred to by some as the “big beautiful bill.”

Ford and the plaintiffs argue that the bill only authorized the EPA to rescind funds that were unobligated as of July 3. However, they argue that all of the $7 billion for the program had been obligated about a year earlier.

The EPA sent memos to the grant recipients, declaring it had no “statutory basis or dedicated funding” for the Solar For All program — something the plaintiffs say is inaccurate because the EPA was only directed to cancel funds that had not already been awarded.

In the complaint filed Wednesday, the plaintiffs call the cancellation a “clear, unambiguous, and material breach of the agreements.”

Ford, who is running for governor, has launched many lawsuits against the Trump administration, at an undetermined cost to taxpayers. A large portion of the lawsuits, like Wednesday’s, are aimed at recovering the state’s federal funding.

“Our courts have agreed time and time again that the president cannot rescind funds approved by Congress,” Ford said. “I am confident this time will be no different.”

Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.