Energy Efficiency Updates – HHS Cuts Hit LIHEAP & PA PUC Draft Order
Massive Cuts to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
‘It’s a bloodbath’: Massive wave of job cuts underway at US health agencies – By Nick Valencia, Brenda Goodman, Meg Tirrell, Tami Luhby and Sean Lyngaas, CNN – Wed April 2, 2025 – Also terminated was the entire staff of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, according to Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association. The program provides about $4 billion to help millions of Americans with their heating and cooling bills. “It will definitely hamper program operations,” Wolfe said, noting that he doesn’t see how the agency can “allocate the remaining $387 million in funds for this year without federal staff.”
Home energy assistance program gutted in HHS mass firings – By Lisa Martine Jenkins – April 1, 2025 – Latitude Media – LIHEAP is among the latest victims of the Trump administration’s dismantling of the federal government. The Trump administration has gutted the federal home energy assistance program as a part of the mass firing of 10,000 Department of Health and Human Services workers. The staff in charge of administering the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, were let go earlier today, according to a statement shared via email by the National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition. Going forward, the status of the program, which provides roughly $4 billion per year to help low-income families with heating and cooling costs, is unclear. Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, told CNN that the firings could cause the program to “grind to a halt” with $387 million left to distribute.
PA Public Utility Commission’s Phase V Tentative Implementation Order
PA CPC Comment document is linked here. Comments on all aspects of the Public Utility Commission’s Phase V Tentative Implementation Order and potential impacts on Act 129 Phase V Energy Efficiency and Conservation Programs. Sign on letter deadline is: Monday, April 7, by 4 PM, so please fill out the below form by Monday April 7, 2025 at noon!
SIGN ON HERE: https://forms.office.com/r/PJ5PdJPuD0
Please contact John Kolesnik (jkolesnik@keealliance.org) or Madi Keaton (mkeaton@pautilitylawproject.org) with any questions!
Hearing on PA HB 109 – Environmental Justice/Cumulative Impacts
April 7, 2025 [Agenda] House Environmental & Natural Resource Protection Committee will meet to consider House Bill 109 (Vitali-D-Delaware) establishing an environmental justice permit review program in DEP to consider cumulative impacts of pollutants on communities – Environmental & Natural Resource Protection will Meet at 11:00 AM on April 7, 2025 in Room 205, Ryan Office Building.
Rep. Vitali Introduces Bill To Establish DEP Environmental Justice Permit Review Program In Law, Analyze Cumulative Impacts Of Pollution From Facilities, Supported By DEP – On January 14, Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware) introduced House Bill 109 that would establish DEP’s Environmental Justice Permit Review Program in law and require an analysis of the cumulative impacts of pollution from certain facilities before a permit could be issued. The legislation is supported by PA DEP. Read more here.
See Supporting Report from Assessing Strengths, Stressors and Environmental Justice in SoutheaStern (ASSESS) Pennsylvania Community and Environmental Health Study
The ASSESS study is a collaboration of Marcus Hook Area Neighbors for Public Health, Clean Air Council, Johns Hopkins University, and community co-investigators. The study utilized a Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model in which residents were full partners in the design, implementation, evaluation, and publication of the study results. View presentation slides. View handouts/fliers here and here.
Abandoned Well Plugging Funding Cuts – Dept of Interior
Thursday, March 27, 2025 – by David Hess – DEP: US Interior Dept. Withdraws Orphan Oil & Gas Well Regulatory Improvement Grant Program To Help Prevent Future Well Abandonments. – On March 20, PA DEP told the Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board the US Department of the Interior has “withdrawn” the Orphan Oil and Gas Well Regulatory Improvement Act Grant Program designed to help states strengthen their programs, in particular to prevent future oil and gas well abandonments.https://paenvironmentdaily.blogspot.com/2025/03/dep-interior-dept-withdraws-orphan-oil.html
Trump halts historic orphaned well-plugging program – By Nick Bowlin – March 27, 2025 – High Country News – The billions of dollars approved by Congress to clean up abandoned oil and gas wells have been frozen as part of Pres. Trump’s sweeping cuts to government. ORPHANED WELLS represent the final stage in what ProPublica recently described as the oil industry’s “playbook”: When oil wells are no longer productive, large companies sell them off to smaller companies and thereby shed their obligation to plug those wells. The increasingly marginal wells change hands, eventually landing with operators who lack the financial means to plug them. And when these companies go bankrupt, the wells become orphaned, meaning that the plugging costs then fall on American taxpayers.
Copy of March 19, 2025 – Letter to Honorable Doug Burgum, U.S. Secretary of the Interior is Here. – On March 20, more than 30 House Democrats sent a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, asking him to clear up the lingering confusion surrounding orphaned well funding and restart the grant program.
Federal money to plug Pa.’s dangerous wells is unfrozen, but Trump admin uncertainty plagues contractors – by Kate Huangpu and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PA | March 20, 2025 — HARRISBURG — As Pennsylvania celebrates plugging 300 abandoned oil and gas wells since 2023, ongoing lawsuits against the Trump administration over hundreds of millions of federal dollars are creating uncertainty for those doing the work on the ground.
Green Bank Updates – Litigation Updates
Federal judge questions whether EPA move to rapidly cancel ‘green bank’ grants was legal – by MICHAEL PHILLIS, Associated Press – April 2, 2025 – A federal judge pressed an attorney for the EPA about whether the agency broke the law when it swiftly terminated $20 billion worth of grants awarded to nonprofits for a green bank by allegedly bulldozing past proper rules and raising flimsy accusations of waste and fraud. In a nearly three-hour hearing, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said the government had provided no substantial new evidence of wrongdoing by the nonprofits and considered technical arguments that could decide whether she is even the right person to hear the case.
E.P.A. Hunt for Shady Deals and ‘Gold Bars’ Comes Up Empty by Lisa Friedman and Claire Brown – New York Times – April 2, 2025 – The agency head said a $20 billion Biden climate program was marred by fraud and abuse. Documents filed for a court hearing this week don’t support that. Over the last few months, Lee Zeldin, EPA administrator has made explosive accusations against the Biden administration, accusing it of “insane” malfeasance in its handling of $20 billion in climate grants. Now, as a legal battle ensues, many of Mr. Zeldin’s claims remain unsupported, and some are flat-out false.
How We Got a Green Bank, How Trump Is Trying to Kill It and Who Gets Hurt By Marianne Lavelle, Dan Gearino – Inside Climate News – April 1, 2025: A faith-based Indiana group and heating contractors in Maine are among hundreds of businesses and organizations stymied by EPA’s attempt to claw back $20 billion of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
EPA asked us 35 questions. We want everyone to have our responses. Statement by Climate United – March 28, 2025 – Earlier this month, the EPA posed 35 questions to Climate United and other awardees as part of an oversight request. In alignment with our deep commitment to transparency, Climate United is pleased to share our formal responses to their questions. Our responses are built on nearly 12 months of working with the EPA to shape our goals, policies, & investment strategy while ensuring strong oversight and controls. EPA has had access to hundreds of documents, transaction-level visibility into our bank accounts, and robust budget and compliance requirements.
Republicans seek documents from climate grant recipients – March 27, 2025 Press Release – The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is requesting documents from environmental groups that received EPA grants — including some that are now suing the Trump administration. All eight groups received grants from the $20 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) established through the 2022 IRA.
Republicans seek documents from climate grant recipients – By Andres Picon | 03/27/2025 E&E News – The House Oversight probe comes as some of the environmental groups are suing to maintain their grant contracts.
EPA insists it has the right to cancel climate grants – GreenWire – 3/27/25 EPA continued to argue that it is under no legal obligation to honor $20 billion in climate grants because the awards conflict with Trump administration policy. EPA’s legal brief states it has the right to terminate contracts “for consideration of its priorities.”
The Trump admin accuses EPA of squirreling away $20 billion in ‘gold bars.’ Here’s what’s really going on. – By Ella Nilsen, CNN Mar 27, 2025
EPA – Waivers On Clean Air Act & More Background On Budget Cuts
E.P.A. Offers a Way to Avoid Clean-Air Rules: Send an Email – By Hiroko Tabuchi – March 27, 2025 – New York Times – Referring to a little-known provision, it said power plants and others could write to seek exemptions to mercury and other restrictions and that “the president will make a decision.” The Biden administration required coal- and oil-burning power plants to greatly reduce emissions of toxic chemicals including mercury, which can harm babies’ brains and cause heart disease in adults. Now, the Trump administration is offering companies an extraordinary out: Send an email, and they might be given permission by President Trump to bypass the new restrictions, as well as other major clean-air rules. The Environmental Protection Agency this week said an obscure section of the Clean Air Act enables the president to temporarily exempt industrial facilities from new rules if the technology required to meet those rules isn’t available, and if it’s in the interest of national security.
How Lee Zeldin Went From Environmental Moderate to Dismantling the E.P.A. By Lisa Friedman – New York Times – March 29, 2025 – He once talked about the need to fight climate change. Now, he embraces Elon Musk, lavishes praise on the president and strives to stand out in a MAGA world. Over the past nine weeks, Mr. Zeldin has withheld billions of dollars in climate funds approved by Congress, tried to fire hundreds of employees, recommended the elimination of thousands more E.P.A. scientists, and started trying to repeal dozens of environmental regulations that limit toxic pollution. He has filled the leadership ranks at the agency with lobbyists and lawyers from industries that have fought environmental regulations.
EPA knew it wrongfully canceled dozens of environmental grants, documents show – By Amudalat Ajasa – Washington Post – March 25, 2025 – According to an internal email, EPA officials knew they had no contractual right to cancel dozens of grants. They did it anyway. Trump officials knew their legal justification for terminating dozens of Environmental Protection Agency grants was flawed, according to documents and internal emails reviewed by The Washington Post.
US Senate Letter & Full List of Project Cuts from EPA
Whitehouse, Blunt Rochester Lead EPW Democrats in Demanding EPA Reverse Unlawful Termination of Grants for Clean Air and Water – March 25, 2025 — New documents reveal 400 grantees are being illegally targeted for termination and expose EPA’s willful violation of congressional appropriations law, contractual agreements, and multiple court orders. The EPW press release from yesterday also included the list of 400 grants EPA plans to terminate (far right column indicates if IRA funding, and there’s a column by state) and internal emails that show how EPA violated its own contracts and court orders. PA cuts are listed here; See Full Spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Bfq08WBcX1i8W2vCBUw46UiIpDwZSZXqR4PA2aUT4ts/edit?pli=1&gid=0#gid=0
USDA Funding Cuts: Energy Programs for Farms & Rural Areas
Trump moves goalposts for farmers counting on clean energy grants – By Mario Alejandro Ariza, Ames Alexander, Joe Engleman – Canary Media – March 31, 2025: The USDA is demanding grant rewrites favoring fossil fuels over renewables, leaving some rural recipients doubtful they’ll ever see the money they were promised. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on March 25th that it would release previously authorized grant funds to farmers and small rural business owners to build renewable energy projects — but only if they rewrite applications to comply with President Donald Trump’s energy priorities. A lawsuit filed earlier this month challenges the legality of the freeze on IRA funding for REAP projects. Earthjustice lawyer Hana Vizcarra, one of the attorneys who filed the suit, called the latest USDA announcement a “disingenuous stunt.”
Potential DOE Funding Cuts
Secret Energy Department “hit list” targets renewable energy industry – by Emily Atkin – Heated – Mar 27, 2025 – Among many other proposed cuts, the “hit list” includes six long-duration energy storage projects that have already had $156 million in federal funding obligated under the bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The grants for those projects were awarded in 2023, and “seen as vital for turning variable wind and solar production into a reliable, round-the-clock power source,” Canary Media reported at the time.