• Billions of dollars in subsidies for more efficient appliances and rooftop solar remain frozen.
• Some states said they can't access rebates and grants that were set to be doled out to homeowners.
• Proponents say energy-efficient appliances and rooftop solar align with Trump's agenda to cut costs.

Many states still can't access hundreds of millions of dollars awarded for federal energy rebates and rooftop solar programs.

The freeze means some contractors in Arizona who have installed home rooftop solar and energy-efficient appliances are waiting to get paid for their work. In Colorado, state officials are delaying hiring more employees to implement the programs.

The confusion seems to be over President Donald Trump's executive orders to pause and revise climate programs as well as his short-lived federal spending freeze. Some $8 billion in rebates for energy-efficient appliances and retrofits, and another $7 billion for rooftop solar — set to be rolled out this year and authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act — are on the line.

Advocacy and trade groups said some states have been able to tap the money, but there is no clear pattern or communication from the Trump administration.

"There is absolutely no blue-red pattern, no geographical pattern. It is completely random," David Terry, president of the National Association of State Energy Officials, said. "We're awaiting that clarification from the administration so states can plan and move forward."

Proponents of the subsidies — including state officials and consumer advocacy groups — said they align with Trump's promise on the campaign trail to lower Americans' energy bills. Retrofitting homes with energy-efficient heating and cooling systems or rooftop solar is expensive up front but can save people money in the long run, they said. And lower-income homeowners and landlords who otherwise couldn't afford the upgrades were the target recipients.

Trump's energy policy has focused on boosting oil and gas drilling to drive down energy costs. Oil executives and economists say that won't happen anytime soon. In addition, potential tariffs on Canada and Mexico could hike gas prices across the country.

"These energy rebates will have real household impacts, not to mention the jobs they will create for contractors and electricians who have to do the work," Xavier Boatright, the Sierra Club's deputy legislative director for clean energy and electrification, told Business Insider. "Many red states like my home state of South Carolina have energy costs at an all-time high."

DOE didn't respond to a request for comment. In a court filing on February 9, attorneys for the Trump administration said that the department expects to resume issuing payments for home energy rebates. The filing doesn't mention the rooftop solar program.

The filing is part of a lawsuit that nearly two dozen states, including Arizona and Colorado, brought against the Trump administration's spending freeze. US District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. ordered the administration to immediately restore and resume funding on February 10.

Frozen accounts for energy rebates and rooftop solar

DOE's Home Energy Rebates are divided into two categories. One offers point-of-sale discounts on heat pumps, electric stoves, insulation, and new breaker boxes and wiring — capped at $14,000 per household.

They are targeted at low- and moderate-income homeowners. Landlords who rent to people in those income brackets are also eligible. The other category helps cut the costs of larger energy efficiency projects that slash home energy use by at least 20%.

EPA's Solar for All program similarly funds rooftop solar in low- to moderate-income communities across states.

Shayla Powell, a spokesperson for the agency, didn't comment on the specific status of Solar for All.<

Powell said that as of February 7, the EPA had worked to ensure all accounts with IRA funding were accessible in accordance with court orders.

But, several states told Business Insider they still can't access the funds. Arizona and Colorado are among the 11 states and the District of Columbia that launched their energy rebate and rooftop solar programs before Trump's inauguration.

Arizona was awarded more than $300 million in total. Adrianna Amato, a spokesperson for Arizona's Office of Resiliency, said in an email that the energy rebates are being processed and a vendor is building a list of qualified contractors completing work in homes that need to be paid.

"We have more than 1,000 applications in review for eligibility," Amato said on February 12. "When we go into the payment system, we are able to submit for reimbursement to draw down funds that have been spent, but we have not received our reimbursements for about two weeks. We only see a status statement that says it's pending agency review."

Will Tool, executive director of Colorado's Energy Office, said the state was similarly awarded nearly $300 million for energy rebates and rooftop solar projects.

Colorado had planned to roll out the rebates to the public early this year and was about to hire some employees to implement the solar program. The efforts are currently on hold.

"Our low- and moderate-income Coloradans would benefit from reduced energy costs, increased comfort, and reductions in pollution," Tool said. "We really do not understand why the Trump administration would want to freeze these programs in Colorado and across the country."

• A federal pause on climate funding is delaying renewable energy projects and hiring.
• Recipients of grants, loans, and tax credits said they don't know if they'll be paid.
• The uncertainty is roiling solar, electric vehicle, and energy efficiency companies.

States and businesses deploying renewable energy projects are scrambling to raise capital, delaying hiring, and, in some cases, furloughing staff.

That's because the funds they were awarded months ago aren't available as President Donald Trump races to squash his predecessor's marquee climate law.

Maren Mahoney, director of Arizona's Office of Resiliency, was preparing to hire four employees to help manage a $156 million grant awarded under the Inflation Reduction Act to fund rooftop solar in low- to moderate-income communities across the state. The project could benefit an estimated 11,200 households by providing cheaper energy, she said. But as of February 7, a federal payment system was inaccessible.

"We are really hesitant to go ahead and hire anybody because we're unable to get into the system, which is how we eventually get reimbursed for our payroll expenses," Mahoney said. "These projects are about affordability and adding energy capacity to the system. So I think solar is actually in line with some of President Trump's priorities."

State officials, solar and electric vehicle businesses, and government workers told Business Insider that their funding remains frozen following Trump's executive order pausing hundreds of billions of dollars in loans, grants, and tax credits for renewable energy projects under the IRA. And even though several federal judges have temporarily blocked a more sweeping spending pause, uncertainty persists among financial grantees.

Jillian Blanchard, vice president of climate change and environmental justice at Lawyers for Good Government, said her team has fielded more than 100 inquiries from groups awarded grants from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Energy Department, and the Agriculture Department.

"Many are waiting on legally obligated funds," Blanchard said. "Some are being are waiting for invoices to be paid. Several have pulled back job offerings that are needed to meet the terms of their grants. Some are having to let people go, and some can't make payroll."

A spokesperson for the EPA said it couldn't comment on the funding freeze, citing pending litigation, and that the agency is working to implement Trump's executive orders. The Agriculture Department and Energy Department didn't return requests for comment.

Furloughs and funding limbo

David Funk, president of Zero Emissions Northwest in Washington state, said on LinkedIn that he furloughed his staff due to Trump's executive orders. The company helps secure grants for rural farmers and small businesses to save on their energy costs by installing solar panels and energy-efficient appliances, among other projects.

He said his clients have $1.9 million in projects under construction but over $250,000 in delayed reimbursements from the Agriculture Department's Rural Energy for American Program, which is funded by the IRA.

"These farmers, laundromat owners, and rural grocery stores took on debt and dipped into their savings, trusting that the grants they were awarded would be paid," Funk said. "Due to Trump's recent executive order, we've advised all clients to pause all future investments as we no longer have confidence that signed contracts will be honored."

EV charging startup SWTCH was awarded over $1 million in federal funding to deploy electric vehicle chargers at multifamily properties in Puerto Rico. Josh Cohen, SWTCH's head of policy, told Business Insider last week that the company received an email from the Energy Department three days after Trump's inauguration saying leadership had "placed a hold" on the project until further notice.

Uncertainty around the future of funding

Cohen said he expects the project to eventually move forward, but the White House orders are creating a lot of uncertainty for small businesses that need government reliability and predictability.

Democrats in Congress also lack clarity about the status of programs at the EPA— one of the main federal agencies implementing the IRA.

On February 6, Sen. Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, and a handful of other lawmakers protested the spending freeze outside EPA headquarters but were blocked by security from entering the agency.

"We need evidence provided to us that the EPA is complying with the court orders," Markey said.

They demanded a meeting with Administrator Lee Zeldin and any employees with Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, which has been fanning out across the federal government. Zeldin was in Los Angeles as part of the EPA's response to the wildfires.

Since the IRA was enacted in 2022, companies have announced plans to invest more than $167 billion in factories to build and recycle technologies like solar panels and EV batteries, according to the research firm Atlas Public Policy. Many companies are awarded both federal tax credits and loans and grants.

"There's nothing that hurts our economy more than uncertainty," Bob Keefe, the executive director of E2, a business group that advocates for renewable energy policy, told Business Insider. "And right now, the uncertainty of tax credits and the spending freeze is roiling the economy. It's not making it attractive for companies to invest and expand and hire new workers."

Electric vehicle charging startup EVgo is the latest company to secure funds from the U.S. Department of Energy as the Biden administration races to approve clean energy loans before Donald Trump takes over.  Trump has promised to cancel any unspent funds from Biden’s bipartisan Inflation Reduction Act, including the $7,500 tax credit for new EV […]

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