Solar for All: lawsuit restores funding to energy program
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In Georgia, Anh Nguyen and a coalition of organizations, including Rhode Island AFL-CIO and several solar companies, sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency after it ended the Solar for All program.
The $7 billion initiative aimed to bring solar energy to 900,000 low-income households. Capital Good Fund received $156 million to launch Georgia BRIGHT, a program that created a Community Advisory Board of residents and stakeholders to guide its implementation.
The EPA terminated Solar for All, claiming it lacked the authority and funds to continue, but the plaintiffs argued that the agency illegally cancelled awarded grants. Judge Mary McElroy sided with the plaintiffs, restoring the program’s legal foundation. The lawsuit highlighted how Solar for All had fostered a network of nonprofits, businesses, and communities beyond the federal agency administering it. While the court ruling revived funding, the organizations involved lost time and momentum during the program’s suspension.
The case demonstrates the vulnerability of locally-built infrastructure when federal funding is disrupted, urging nonprofits to consider long-term sustainability.
