Trump’s Energy Price Hike: A Timeline of Broken Promises

Action: As the government shutdown entered its second day, White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, “the of Project 2025 fame,” announced the administration would claw back billions in clean energy funds—nearly all from states that did not support Trump in the 2024 election. The funds had already been obligated to build wind, solar, and transmission projects to cut energy prices and strengthen the grid. Instead, the administration is weaponizing the budget process to punish political opponents.

Impact: Stripping away this funding won’t just hurt blue states—it will raise costs and weaken grid reliability across the country. As one clean energy advocate put it, “energy does not abide by state boundaries […] Anytime you destroy a project in one part of the country, it’s going to affect another part of the country.” By clawing back these investments, Trump is driving up utility bills, undermining reliability, and costing jobs—all to settle political scores. Families everywhere, not just in the states he targets, will be forced to pay the price.

Action: The Trump administration unveiled an all-of-government bailout to prop up the dying coal industry—the dirtiest and most expensive power source on the grid. The plan funnels more than $600 million into keeping dying, uneconomic plants alive, opens millions of acres of federal land for new coal mining, and guts dozens of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) safeguards designed to curb climate and water pollution from coal and other fossil fuel plants.

Impact: By shoveling taxpayer dollars to polluters and tearing down protections for clean air and water, Trump is leaving American families with toxic air and higher bills—all so coal barons can wring out just a few more years of profit. Chris Wright, fossil fuel enthusiast and Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE), has already forced one coal plant to run well past its retirement, sticking ratepayers with millions in unnecessary costs. Now, the administration is preparing a broader policy to, in Wright’s words, “stop the closure of coal plants”—more than 100 of which are set to retire before the end of Trump’s term. His Big Coal Bailout will lock the country into even more expensive, outdated power, with working families left holding the bill.

Action: Joining the administration’s crusade against wind and solar, Trump’s top political appointee overseeing the Army Corps of Engineers issued a directive requiring the agency to weigh a project’s “annual potential energy generation per acre” and whether it would “denigrate the aesthetics of America’s natural landscape” when issuing permits under the Clean Air Act. 

Impact: The standard is a transparent attempt to block permits for wind and solar—projects Trump has derided as “ugly” and attacked for “tak[ing] up thousands of acres”—in favor of fossil fuels. The administration claims this is about reducing environmental impact and conserving land, but ignoring the climate crisis—from wildlife loss to rising seas and wildfires—will cause far greater damage to America’s natural landscape. Instead of boosting cheaper clean energy, Trump is working overtime to protect fossil fuels and block renewables—an approach that will only drive up utility bills for working families.

Action: As part of Trump’s escalating campaign against immigrants, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided a Hyundai electric vehicle (EV) plant under construction in Georgia. ICE agents detained 475 workers, most of them Korean nationals holding valid work visas. With much of its specialized workforce suddenly gone, Hyundai is now facing months-long construction delays.

Impact: As BloombergE&E News put it, “the economic ramifications are potentially just beginning.” Despite Korean companies pledging billions in U.S. manufacturing—including $26 billion from Hyundai alone—and the White House touting those investments, Trump’s raid has stalled production, disrupted the domestic supply chain, and now risks driving up EV manufacturing costs. Those costs could eventually hit consumers trying to make the cost-saving switch to EVs. Beyond this one project, the raid has “totally freaked out” businesses, fueling fears that Trump will target other industries that rely on specialized temporary foreign labor. Immigration officials boasted that it was the “largest single-site enforcement operation” in history—complete with images of hundreds of shackled Korean workers. The chilling message to global investors is clear: under Trump, the United States is closed for business.

Action: The New York Times reported that the White House has directed at least six federal agencies to draft plans to “thwart the country’s offshore wind industry” as part of Trump’s escalating war on wind energy. Even agencies with unrelated missions are being drawn in. At HHS, officials are legitimizing baseless conspiracy theories linking wind turbines to health problems. And the Department of Defense is following up on vague “national security” concerns first raised when Trump’s Department of the Interior abruptly halted the nearly completed Revolution Wind project.

Impact: Just as Trump has pushed his bizarre bird-related conspiracy theories, the administration is now leaning on fringe pseudo-science and manufactured security concerns to stall clean energy. Kennedy is investigating wind turbine health myths he himself has spread, while Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has floated the fantasy of a “swarm drone attack through a wind farm.” The strategy is obvious: Throw out as many wild claims as possible and see what sticks. By mobilizing a cross-government effort to obstruct offshore wind, Trump is working to block or delay projects that would add desperately needed, affordable clean power to the grid. The result will be even steeper bills for consumers as energy demand continues to skyrocket.

Action: According to recent legal filings, the Trump administration is moving to reconsider approval of major offshore wind projects off the coasts of Massachusetts and Maryland—despite both projects already securing the necessary permits to advance.

Impact: The message is unmistakable: no project is safe from being dragged back into endless review, no matter how far along it is. The result is uncertainty for investors and developers, delays for communities counting on clean energy jobs, and higher costs for families. As Maryland Gov. Wes Moore warned, Trump’s actions would “directly lead to utility-rate hikes” by blocking the clean power supply needed to lower bills and strengthen the grid.

Action: As we’ve detailed in earlier editions of this memo, Trump’s EPA has waged a baseless disinformation campaign against the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF)—freezing and attempting to claw back already obligated funds, smearing grantees, and repeating thoroughly discredited claims of fraud and abuse. Now, two Trump-appointed judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia lifted an injunction that had barred the EPA from seizing funds already in private bank accounts for grantees. Their ruling parroted the same unfounded talking points pushed by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin—including claims that the agency had previously been forced to admit in court it had no evidence to support.

Impact: GGRF grantees have pledged to continue the legal fight, but the ruling represents a major setback for a program designed to cut energy costs and deliver investments to the communities that need them most. Before Zeldin’s witch hunt, GGRF dollars were driving economic growth and lowering household energy bills. If the EPA succeeds in clawing back these congressionally obligated funds, the nonpartisan analysts at Energy Innovation estimate American consumers will pay an additional $52 billion in energy costs.

Action: In the latest escalation of Trump’s campaign to crush the wind industry, the Department of Transportation (DOT) announced it would cancel or withdraw $679 million in federal funding for 12 projects supporting offshore wind development. The cuts include funding for building or upgrading critical port infrastructure in California, New York, Virginia, and New Jersey—projects intended to serve as staging hubs for assembling and deploying offshore wind turbines. These facilities are essential for building the clean energy infrastructure that could power millions of homes and attract billions in private investment.

Impact: As one former offshore wind executive put it, “the industry is in dire straits.” By stripping away this funding, Trump is wielding a sledgehammer against the supply chain necessary to bring affordable offshore wind power online. Without these staging hubs, projects will face delays, scale-backs, or cancellations—jeopardizing billions in investment and hundreds of jobs. More importantly, it slows the addition of affordable clean power to the grid, leaving families to shoulder higher utility bills as demand climbs and the country remains reliant on dirty, aging, and costly fossil fuel plants.

Action: The Trump administration reissued an emergency stay-open order for Constellation Energy’s Eddystone Generating Station outside Philadelphia, forcing the aging oil- and gas-fired plant to remain online at least six months past its scheduled retirement.

Impact: Despite the grid operator approving its closure after finding no reliability concerns with closing the costly plant, the DOE overrode that decision, citing “emergency” conditions along with a controversial study about blackout risks that energy experts have widely panned as flawed. Customers across the entire region will shoulder nearly $70 million more annually to cover expenses for keeping the plant running—costs that wouldn’t otherwise exist and that will provide no benefit to ratepayers. Meanwhile, Pennsylvania families living near Eddystone—already in one of the most polluted corridors in the state—are stuck with higher bills and more health risks. If Trump’s order were really about an energy emergency and reliability concerns, he wouldn’t be blocking cheaper, faster-to-build clean energy at every turn. In reality, the only “emergency” his administration recognizes is when fossil fuel plants face scheduled retirements, laying bare his true agenda: protecting corporate polluters and sticking working families with the bill.

Action: Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins issued a directive instructing the Forest Service to prioritize “land use efficiency” when reviewing proposals for power generation projects on national forest lands. Under the new criteria, projects will be evaluated by how much power they would generate per acre. In announcing the policy, USDA claimed it was about “strengthening American energy production” and “reducing reliance on foreign energy sources.” Rollins left little doubt about the intent, declaring that the days of “depending on foreign adversaries” for energy—specifically calling out “foreign-made solar panels”—are over.

Impact: This is part of a growing trend: The Trump administration is rolling out new directives and arbitrary metrics across agencies to choke off renewable energy development. By weaponizing land-use standards, Trump officials are creating barriers designed to tilt the scales against wind and solar, regardless of their economic or environmental benefits. Their rhetoric about reducing reliance on foreign energy is a smokescreen—America is already the world’s largest oil and gas producer, with crude oil production hitting a record high this summer. As the Center for American Progress explains, “We can never be energy independent while we rely on a fuel source […] controlled by the global market.” Real energy independence comes from building more clean energy. This policy does the opposite—and leaves ratepayers stuck paying for expensive, dirty, volatile energy sources.

Action: Citing vague national security “concerns,” the Trump administration issued a stop-work order for Revolution Wind, a project off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut that is more than 80 percent complete. A federal judge granted Ørsted, the project’s developer, a preliminary injunction to resume construction, but the administration can still appeal—or invent new stall tactics—to escalate Trump’s broader war on wind power. Despite years of federal reviews, including clearance from the Pentagon, and holding every required permit, Revolution Wind remains at risk.

Impact: Once operational, Revolution Wind is expected to power 350,000 homes in New England and save ratepayers up to $1.7 billion annually. But the project still faces significant uncertainty. U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth condemned the administration’s rationale as “the height of arbitrary and capricious,” warning that further interference could prevent Revolution Wind from meeting key deadlines and cause “the entire project [to] collapse.” Regardless, the month-long delay has already cost the developers $2.3 million per day, according to court filings. And if Trump’s sabotage succeeds, New England families and businesses would be deprived of much-needed affordable clean energy and forced to pay billions in extraneous electricity costs. Even if Revolution Wind is ultimately completed, the Trump administration has once again sent a chilling message to private investors in U.S. energy infrastructure: the government cannot be trusted to be a reliable partner or keep its promises.

Action: The Department of Commerce announced it was opening a national security investigation into imports of wind turbines and their components. The move could pave the way for steep new tariffs on the technology—just weeks after Trump dismissed wind power as a “con job” and sneered that turbines are “no good [..] they’re made in China, almost all of them.”

Impact: This marks yet another weaponization of tariff taxes under Trump. While the administration has previously framed his tariff scheme as necessary to “protect American workers” and increase domestic manufacturing to bolster “U.S. national security,” Trump’s decade-plus hatred of “windmills” and ongoing war on the wind industry suggest the move is about one thing: undermining one of the nation’s fastest-growing sources of affordable power. Analysts warn that the manufactured investigation would “raise the price of imported materials that wind projects depend on” and would be “especially painful” for offshore wind projects already underway. By deliberately driving up costs, Trump is attempting to strangle the industry at home and stick American families with higher utility bills.

Action: Trump’s DOE issued yet another emergency order requiring an aging Michigan coal plant to stay online, extending a prior directive that had already pushed the plant well past its retirement date. 

Impact: Keeping the plant running has already cost ratepayers tens of millions of dollars in just the three months since the first order. Every extra day it operates, working families are stuck with higher utility bills—while the Trump administration continues to sabotage the clean energy projects that could deliver cheaper, more reliable power. Michigan’s top utility regulator estimates that extending the plant’s life even longer will saddle ratepayers with more than $100 million in unnecessary costs. And this is just the beginning: Trump’s DOE has been cooking the books with what experts call an “arbitrary, capricious” and “contrary to law” grid reliability analysis—laying the groundwork to force even more dirty, expensive fossil fuel plants nationwide to run beyond their retirement dates. If they follow through, families nationwide will bear billions of dollars in unnecessary costs.

Action: The Commerce Department slapped a 50 percent tariff tax on steel and aluminum used in wind turbines, as well as their parts and components—alongside more than 400 other product categories that will impact everything from auto parts to construction equipment and materials. 

Impact: Trump’s erratic tariffs have already wreaked havoc on the economy, costing the average household thousands of dollars. Now, by targeting wind turbines and their components, his policies are making it more expensive to build the energy infrastructure needed to meet soaring demand and expand access to affordable electricity. These added costs will ripple through to higher electricity prices, while creating more uncertainty for an industry already under attack since the day Trump returned to office.

Action: USDA Secretary Rollins announced the department will effectively end support for farmers who want to install solar or wind on their land by cutting off access to loan guarantees under the decades-old Rural Energy for America (REAP) Program. 

Impact: Although REAP loans come at little cost to taxpayers—since they’re typically repaid—the Trump administration has deliberately gutted the program. Farmers who want to lower their energy bills with renewables will no longer have access to this proven federal financing tool. Rollins framed the move as protecting “prime American farmland,” but as Lloyd Ritter, a former aide to then-Senator Tom Harkin who helped draft the law, told Canary Media, “Farmers themselves are the ones making these decisions […] they’re doing it because the economics are really beneficial to them.” In fact, more than three-quarters of REAP funds have historically gone to farmers in Republican districts. By cutting off support, Trump isn’t just stripping farmers of a key source of savings and revenue; he’s choking off cheaper, more reliable power for rural communities. As Ritter put it, “They’re hurting MAGA farmers […] and killing off economic growth in rural America.”

Action: Days after signing his disastrous economic bill repealing clean energy tax credits, Trump issued an executive order instructing the Treasury Department to interpret the law as narrowly as possible. That directive led to new guidance restricting a long-established standard used to determine whether developers are considered to have “commenced construction” for tax purposes. The new rules throw up yet another roadblock that will make it difficult for wind and solar projects to qualify for tax credits before they expire next year.

Impact: The new rules throw hundreds of wind and solar projects into limbo by eliminating the decades-old five percent safe harbor provision, which let developers qualify for credits after spending a portion of project costs. Now, projects must prove continuous physical construction—an expensive and legally uncertain hurdle that will threaten funding sources and derail development. With fewer clean energy projects able to break ground, electricity supply will tighten just as demand surges from AI data centers and worsening climate extremes—raising prices for everyone. Or, as Abigail Ross Hopper, the president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, put it, “This is yet another act of energy subtraction from the Trump administration that will further delay the buildout of affordable, reliable power.”

Action: Following months of legal challenges to the Trump administration’s unlawful freeze of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued updated guidance for states to access the funding. But instead of restoring stalled deployment plans, the new rules keep red tape in place, further delaying the federal funding needed to expand EV charging.

Impact: While the administration claims its guidance “slashes red tape,” EV charging projects have been on hold since February, and states are still scrambling to figure out how to move forward. The delay hits rural communities the hardest, where residents are dependent on public charging infrastructure to make the switch to cost-saving EVs. Worse, the updated guidance eliminates a Biden-era requirement that 40 percent of funds benefit disadvantaged communities. That means fewer chargers, more gasoline use, and higher prices at the pump—especially in rural areas that overwhelmingly voted for Trump.

Action: Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it’s canceling $7 billion in Solar for All grants, falsely claiming it “no longer has the authority” to administer the program. The move amounts to an illegal attempt by Administrator Lee Zeldin to claw back clean energy funds that Congress already appropriated and communities are already using to lower energy bills.

Impact: Rooftop solar can be deployed in a matter of days, not years, and is exactly the kind of affordable, fast-to-build power needed as record heat and power-hungry data centers push the grid to the limits. But Trump’s EPA is sabotaging the program designed to bring it to more than 900,000 low-income households. Instead of delivering economic relief, they are moving to jack up working people’s utility bills while doubling down on fossil fuels and denying communities the tools they need to build energy resilience.

Action: Trump’s Interior Department continued its assault on wind development with yet another barrier, this time by indulging the president’s bizarre, bird-related conspiracy theories. New guidance from the department ramps up scrutiny of wind projects under the guise of protecting eagle populations, a move clearly aimed at further blocking one of the cheapest, fastest-to-build energy sources.

Impact: Despite actual bird experts supporting wind energy—because they understand that the real threat to wildlife is climate change—Secretary Doug Burgum’s cynical use of wildlife protections comes as fossil fuels pose a far greater threat to all kinds of species and ecosystems. In fact, just months before issuing this guidance, the Trump administration moved to gut the very law it cites, claiming it’s a burden on oil and gas producers. While absurd on its face, the nefarious action could delay or block even more wind projects from moving forward. At the same time, higher costs from skyrocketing energy demand will be passed on to consumers.

Action: Secretary Doug Burgum issued yet another order targeting clean energy, this time mandating a “capacity density” test for energy projects on public lands. The new standard gives the agency sweeping authority to deny permits to wind and solar projects if they’re deemed less space-efficient than fossil fuels, an arbitrary metric designed to stack the deck against clean power.

Impact: While Secretary Burgum claims this move is about land conservation and disturbing wildlife, if he were truly concerned about protecting the natural environment, he’d be working to slow the climate crisis posing the greatest threat to it. Instead, as Heatmap News reported, anti-renewable activists view this and other recent orders as a path to their “Holy Grail” of forcibly decommissioning already-operating clean energy projects. By sowing uncertainty and signaling hostility to the sector, Interior is chilling investment, risking existing supply, and making it harder to bring new, affordable energy online. The result will be devastating for consumers’ wallets.

Action: Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management rescinded more than 3.5 million acres of unleased federal waters previously designated for offshore wind development.

Impact: The sweeping move halts all future leasing on federal waters and wipes out $65 million in projected investments by 2030 that would have supported 56,000 jobs. With power demand rising and utilities struggling to keep up, killing new offshore wind projects means killing one of the best chances to bring cheap new power online—and locking families into higher electricity costs for years to come.

Action: In a transparent bid to curry favor with the White House, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy jumped headfirst into the administration’s assault on wind energy. His department issued a new policy requiring wind turbines to be built at least 1.2 miles from roads and railroads, citing flimsy safety concerns and offering no real evidence.

Impact: The move threatens to eliminate vast swaths of land from clean energy development and undermines the rights of private property owners to lease their land for wind projects. “I’ve never heard of that,” said one rail expert, dismissing DOT’s justification—wind turbines interfering with train signals—as baseless. But the intent is clear: delay, obstruct, and dismantle wind development by any means necessary. In the real world, and not the bizarro world where the reality TV star president wages weird personal vendettas against wind energy, this means fewer new power sources, skyrocketing demand, and even higher utility bills for working-class families.

Action: Trump’s EPA proposed rescinding the bedrock legal backbone underpinning many common-sense regulations, abandoning its mission to protect Americans from dangerous pollution and making climate denial the official policy of the federal government.

Impact: If the EPA successfully rescinds the endangerment finding, it will “defang its own regulatory power” to stop climate pollution while giving corporate polluters a free pass to poison our communities. For starters, it would immediately knock out the EPA’s ability to curb vehicle emissions, a top priority of fossil fuel companies. Trump’s own EPA analysis shows that repealing the rule would increase gas prices and lead to half a million job losses within a decade. Far from just a legal rollback, it’s a policy change that would hurt workers and leave communities more vulnerable to pollution and climate-driven disasters—while making everyday tasks like driving to work even more expensive.

Action: In a sweeping directive, Secretary Burgum ordered Interior to identify and eliminate any “preferential treatment” for wind and solar across the department’s regulations, policies, and practices. The order baselessly claims the Biden administration intentionally misapplied the law in approving offshore wind projects, and signals that Interior may soon halt onshore development on federal lands as well.

Impact: According to Heatmap News, the directive requires Interior to reexamine every stage of project review—including actions occurring “after a project receives its final record of decision,” and to produce a report on fully-approved offshore wind projects’ impact on “military readiness,” laying the groundwork for future cancellations. It’s a nakedly political move, designed to bully American clean energy companies out of existence under the guise of “leveling the playing field.” Instead of helping meet surging demand with affordable new power, Trump’s Interior Department is stalling current projects, threatening future ones, and driving up energy costs for American families.

Action: As part of his AI Action Plan, Trump announced a sweeping initiative to accelerate data center construction—while vowing to prevent the “premature decommissioning” of fossil fuel plants. With AI infrastructure already pushing utilities and grids to their limits, Trump’s plan explicitly calls for quickly building and connecting to new “dispatchable power sources” to the grid, like gas and coal—while dismissing the cheaper and faster-to-build energy sources (yes, cheaper even without federal tax credits) that account for the vast majority of new generation.

Impact: The contradiction is glaring. On the same day the Department of Energy canceled a major loan for a multi-state transmission line to deliver cheap wind power, the administration made clear it would double down on dirty, expensive fossil fuels. Trump’s relentless sabotage of clean power (documented throughout this memo) has left the grid unprepared for surging demand. And now, by sidelining fast-to-build renewables in favor of costlier gas and coal, Trump is guaranteeing higher prices for working families.

Action: Despite a legally-binding contract, Trump’s DOE formally canceled a $4.9 billion loan awarded under the Biden administration for the Grain Belt Express, a transmission line set to stretch from Kansas to Missouri to deliver low-cost wind power to neighboring states.

Impact: The project’s developer noted in 2022 that few, if any, private lenders could finance a transmission line of this scale, making the federal loan essential. Without it, the project’s future is uncertain. Pulling the commitment with vague reasoning sends a chilling signal to other developers and injects new instability into the clean energy sector. Once again, the administration is artificially constraining supply and blocking abundant Midwestern wind power from reaching population centers that need it most, just as demand surges and prices climb.

Action: New York’s Public Service Commission scrapped plans to build the transmission infrastructure needed to connect multiple offshore wind farms to New York City’s grid, directly citing the uncertainty created by the Trump administration’s anti-wind agenda.

Impact: New York City’s electric grid remains heavily reliant on fossil fuels—largely due to a lack of transmission capacity for clean power, according to the Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice. With Trump throwing the wind industry into chaos—including recently declaring that he wouldn’t allow another “windmill” to be built in the U.S.—the decision reflects a growing national trend. States are being forced to pause or pull back on wind infrastructure investment. Trump’s “energy dominance agenda” is stalling projects and cutting off one of the most effective tools to lower electricity costs. And it’s working families who will pay the price.

Action: After Trump illegally fired two Democratic commissioners, the now Republican-dominated Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reversed its earlier decision barring two fossil fuel executives from sitting on the boards of Exxon and Chevron—despite evidence they attempted to collude with OPEC.

Impact: The FTC is meant to function as an independent consumer watchdog, but Trump’s power grab has turned it into a political tool. His executive order claiming authority to fire commissioners is facing legal challenges, but the damage is already underway. The FTC is supposed to protect consumers, not fossil fuel CEOs. The message from Trump’s FTC is clear: it’s open season for price gouging. Instead of cracking down on corporate abuse, the commission is now shielding it, giving oil companies even more freedom to manipulate energy prices at the expense of American families.

Action: In a stunning new policy, the Interior Department now requires personal sign-off from Secretary Burgum for virtually all wind and solar projects connected to federal land—including projects that are primarily on private land but have elements that cross public land, like transmission lines.

Impact: The move creates a massive bureaucratic bottleneck, clearly designed to grind clean energy permit approvals to a halt. It hands a stark fossil fuel ally the power to stall or deny projects at will, injecting political interference into what should be a neutral permitting process. At the very moment when AI-driven demand and extreme heat are pushing grids to the brink, the administration is strangling the only power sources that can be deployed quickly and affordably. As POLITICO put it, the Trump administration has been “aggressively working to suffocate” renewable energy, and “its latest action could do the trick.”

Action: Trump ratcheted up his nonsensical trade war with our largest trading partners, announcing plans to impose a 30 percent tariff on all imports from Mexico and the European Union, and signaled similar tariffs on 23 other major trading partners, including Canada, Japan, and Brazil.

Impact: Trump’s trade war may be aimed at our allies, but it lands squarely on the backs of working-class Americans. Tariffs function as a national sales tax, raising prices on everyday goods, including energy-related imports. Because infrastructure like pipelines and refineries can’t quickly adjust, U.S. consumers will continue to rely on imported fuel, but with higher costs from tariffs passed directly onto them.

Action: Missouri Senator Josh Hawley announced that Trump and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Chris Wright would be “putting a stop” to the Green Belt Express, a multi-state transmission line to deliver low-cost Kansas wind power to neighboring states.

Impact: The project was already under threat from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who recently opened a politically-motivated investigation to “ultimately [kill] this project.” Now, despite taking credit for the project (which has been in the works since 2010) and bipartisan support from leaders of the four states it crosses, Trump appears poised to obstruct it. Though it’s unclear how he will do so, Sen. Hawley has called on DOE Secretary Wright to cancel a $4.9 billion conditional loan for the project. 

Action: On his first day in office, Trump lifted the freeze on new LNG export approvals. Now, a new forecast from his own administration confirms that LNG-driven demand will be a major factor pushing gas prices higher in the coming year.

Impact: Exporting more gas reduces domestic supply and raises consumer prices. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, LNG demand and U.S. gas production will be “two key drivers of price” moving forward. As Trump accelerates new export projects, Americans will pay more to heat their homes and power their lives.

Action: At a cabinet meeting last week, Trump told reporters, “I believe the tariff on copper, we’re going to make it 50 percent.” Copper is essential to electric vehicles (EVs), batteries, transmission lines, and other renewable energy infrastructure.

Impact: These tariffs will spike costs on raw materials needed to expand affordable clean energy and manufacture EVs. The tariffs will also increase the cost of manufacturing gas-powered cars in America, as copper is a crucial component in their production. This comes on the heels of Trump’s earlier pledge to slap a 25 percent tariff on all imported vehicles, claiming it would make people “start buying American cars.”

Action: Days after signing his megabill that repealed clean energy tax credits, Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. Treasury to interpret the bill in the most restrictive ways possible, attempting to bully the industry out of existence.

Impact: By challenging long-established standards for what counts as “under construction,” Trump could make wind and solar projects ineligible for tax incentives even before they expire. Additionally, extreme interpretations of the “foreign-entity of concern” (FEOC) requirements, which block credits for projects sourcing materials from companies tied to countries like China, could make it very difficult to prove compliance—which could serve as a “backdoor way” to cancel clean energy projects altogether, according to experts. Wind and solar are the cheapest and fastest-to-build sources of new electricity. Trump’s meddling could drive prices even higher, just as demand is surging.

Action: Declaring “coal is back,” Trump signed his Big Oil Billionaire Bill to kneecap American industry and make life harder and more expensive for working-class Americans into law.

Impacts:

• Kills Clean Energy Tax Credits: Trump delivered a major blow to clean energy development and deployment, which will make Americans even more reliant on fossil fuels, benefiting Big Oil executives and fossil fuel industry shareholders who have a vested interest in keeping prices high. As a result, Americans face an average energy price hike of $110 next year and up to $400 annually within a decade.
• Eliminates Residential Energy Tax Credit: Created under the George W. Bush administration, the Residential Energy Tax Credit helped homeowners install solar panels, geothermal heat pumps, battery systems, and more. Trump’s repeal means families will have to pay more for these upgrades, or forgo an average of $1,250 in annual energy savings. In 2023 alone, 1.2 million families used the credit, and one in every 20 households now has rooftop solar. By eliminating this incentive at a time of rising demand, Trump just effectively cut off a major source of new energy—and raised costs for everyone.
• Cuts Energy Efficiency Home Improvement Tax Credit: The law also eliminates a popular credit that helped families afford energy-efficient upgrades like heat pumps, water heaters, weatherization, and insulation. In 2023 alone, 2.3 million households used it and lowered their utility bills, saving up to $990 per year. Without it, these upgrades become more expensive for families who need them, and overall grid efficiency declines, putting more pressure on already strained energy systems and driving up costs for everyone.
• Sabotages local affordable energy projects for tribes, rural co-ops, and public power authorities:  The law eliminates key exceptions to strict domestic sourcing requirements that allowed tax-exempt groups to claim clean energy tax credits as direct cash payments. Without these exceptions—such as when domestic components aren’t available or would significantly increase costs—it becomes nearly impossible for tribes, rural electric cooperatives, and public power authorities to move forward with affordable clean energy projects that lower utility bills and strengthen local energy resilience.
• Repeals the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF): As we’ve detailed in previous versions of this memo, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has waged a baseless campaign to discredit clean energy grants issued by the Biden administration through the GGRF, labeling them as fraudulent. Now, the new law formally repeals the fund and rescinds any unobligated balances, undermining the EPA’s ability to implement and oversee a program that was delivering investments to lower energy costs in the communities that need it most.
• Ends Environmental Justice Block Grants: This law repeals the first-of-its-kind $3 billion federal program designed to empower disadvantaged communities to address their own pollution burdens and clean energy needs. It rescinds more than $1 billion in unobligated funding, cutting off support projects that reduce indoor air pollution and counter health risks from extreme heat and wildfires, and help households transition from oil-based heating to cleaner, more efficient heat pumps that lower energy bills. While the EPA is also working to terminate nearly 800 already-awarded grants, this law guts the funding its staff needs to implement and oversee them.

Action: Despite ongoing litigation over Trump’s illegal attempts to terminate $20 billion in clean energy grants, Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) falsely claimed in a court filing that the Big Oil Billionaire Bill claws back $17 billion in already obligated funding from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF).

Impact: As Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse put it, “wishful thinking […] does not moot the ongoing litigation.” While the bill did repeal the GGRF and rescind unobligated funds, the money in question had already been obligated and disbursed. Climate United Fund, one of several nonprofits suing the EPA— called DOJ’s claim “a lie to justify illegal attempts to claw back funds” meant to help communities across the country. Their grant, for example, would support clean energy projects across the country, including one for an Alaska Native Village urgently in need of affordable power.

Action: Trump signed three congressional resolutions targeting California’s landmark vehicle emissions standards, despite warnings from the Government Accountability Office and the Senate parliamentarian that the legal mechanism used was an abuse of authority.

Impact: California clean car standards have long set the pace for national policy, influencing emissions rules across the country. With the fourth-largest economy in the world, its leadership is critical to transitioning away from gas-powered vehicles. While Trump can’t stop the shift to EVs entirely, repealing this authority—on top of killing EV tax credits in megabill—will make it more expensive for Americans to switch to the cleaner, cost-saving vehicles.

Action: In a speech shortly before signing resolutions to repeal California’s vehicle emissions standards, Trump declared, “We’re not going to approve windmills” or “let windmills get built,” going beyond his administration’s previous claims that approval delays were only temporary. Just a day earlier, Heatmap News reported that federal agencies were still not processing applications for onshore wind projects.

Impact: Blocking or delaying these projects limits future grid capacity and drives up electricity prices by preventing affordable supply from meeting surging demand. Combined with the repeal of tax credits incentivizing wind development, Trump’s anti-renewable stance continues creating deep market uncertainty, raising costs for new and existing projects alike.

Action: Trump’s EPA proposed a rule to eliminate limits on climate pollution from coal and gas power plants, falsely claiming these emissions don’t contribute to climate change or dangerous pollution.

Impact: The move paves the way for broader attacks on clean air and water protections, serving fossil fuel interests at the expense of public health and household budgets. By propping up outdated, polluting fossil fuel plants, Trump is locking working-class families into a dirtier and more expensive energy future.

Action: Invoking emergency powers under the 1935 Federal Power Act, former fossil fuel executive and current Secretary of Energy Chris Wright ordered a Michigan coal plant slated to close at the end of May to remain open, citing the potential for an energy emergency that doesn’t exist.

Impact: The move builds on a prior Trump executive order allowing DOE to cite grid reliability as a reason to force coal plants to remain open. Fossil Fuel enthusiast Chris Wright leaned on that rationale, warning of a potential summer energy emergency. But Michigan Public Service Commission chair Dan Scripps told The Detroit News that the state already produces more power than it needs, calling the DOE’s order “unnecessary” and warning it will raise costs for homes and businesses across the Midwest. MISO, the grid operator for Michigan and 14 other Midwest states, also confirmed last month it has “sufficient capacity” heading into summer. If Trump’s manufactured emergency were real, his own efforts to stall clean energy would only make it worse. Whether it’s using executive powers to block clean energy or abusing emergency authority to prop up the dying coal industry, the result is the same: Trump is forcing Americans to subsidize his fossil fuel cronies’ profits. 

Action: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had taken a key step to reverse Biden-era fuel economy rules designed to save Americans money and reduce pollution.

Impact: In his first official move as Transportation Secretary, Duffy signed a memo acknowledging Trump’s policy of promoting fossil fuel use and initiating the rollback. He falsely claimed that the standards, along with a nonexistent federal “EV mandate,” are making cars unaffordable. In reality (something the former Real World star should be familiar with), the standards don’t even take effect until 2027, making his claim laughable on its face. The fuel economy rules now on the chopping block are projected to save drivers more than $23 billion in fuel costs, or roughly $600 per vehicle over its lifetime. Rolling them back, a top priority of fossil fuel companies, means less efficient cars and higher prices at the pump for American drivers.

Action: Trump’s EPA continued its push to illegally terminate $20 billion in clean energy grants, stalling projects funded through the GGRF’s National Clean Investment Fund and Clean Communities Investment Accelerator in low-income communities. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has claimed, without evidence, that the terminations were justified by misconduct and fraud. But The New York Times reported that a federal investigation may have ended after turning up no evidence of wrongdoing.

Impact: The terminations froze critical funding and halted projects aimed at lowering costs in communities that need it most. In Michigan, plans to build and renovate energy-efficient rental housing to address a severe housing shortage are now at risk, as developers can’t access the capital they were promised. This leaves more Michiganders unable to afford to live where they work. Millions more in funding for cost-saving measures, like insulating older homes, are also now on the chopping block.

Action: Trump’s DOE launched a sweeping “review” of 179 Biden-era awards, totaling more than $15 billion, signaling potential terminations. Days later, Semafor reported that the first cuts could target loans issued by the DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO). And on May 29, the department officially canceled its first LPO loan.

Impact: The review casts serious doubt over key clean energy projects. Under Biden, the LPO approved more than 50 deals worth over $100 billion, including a major loan to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) expected to deliver $100 million in annual savings to 5.5 million Californians. But with rising costs from Trump’s tariffs and mounting uncertainty over the promised loan, PG&E says it can no longer factor in those savings, meaning customers will foot the bill. Other utilities, including those in Michigan, face similar risks. Meanwhile, E&E News reported that DOE is evaluating clean energy loan values for potential sale, signaling the office could shutter altogether.

Action: Trump’s DOE proposed repealing or weakening more than two dozen efficiency standards, including for appliances, claiming the move would save Americans more than $11 billion.

Impact: The DOE’s own analysis shows the move would increase utility bills by more than $54 billion, according to the Appliance Standards Awareness Project. Rolling back these standards could flood the market with outdated, energy-wasting products, driving up energy costs for millions.

Action: The New York Times reported that Trump’s EPA plans to terminate the ENERGY STAR program, a widely used labeling system that helps consumers identify energy-efficient appliances.

Impact: Though ENERGY STAR is authorized under the Clean Air Act and cannot be unilaterally scrapped, the move aligns with Trump’s efforts to dismantle environmental programs in favor of fossil fuel interests. The program costs just $32 million annually but saves consumers over $40 billion each year on utility bills. In March, dozens of companies urged EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin to protect ENERGY STAR. They warned that eliminating it “will not serve the American people,” especially as electricity demand is set to surge in the years ahead.

Action: According to a court filing reported by The Washington Post, the EPA plans to cancel all grants issued by its Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, nearly 800 in total. The filing came just days after reports that the EPA would fire every staffer working on environmental justice.

Impact: Although the agency is required to conduct a detailed review of each grant before termination, experts say the EPA has yet to provide evidence that any such reviews have taken place and may have misled the court. If finalized, the cancellations would strip funding from vulnerable communities working to lower energy costs and protect residents from air and water pollution, halting critical progress towards healthier, more affordable communities.

Action: Citing Trump’s fake day one “energy emergency” declaration, the Interior Department announced it would fast-track approvals for fossil fuels on public lands, claiming the declaration allows it to radically slash environmental review timelines required by bedrock environmental laws.

Impact: Despite expert consensus that no such energy emergency exists, Trump is cutting project review timelines from a year to just 14 days, effectively eliminating public input opportunities. While nearly all new electricity supply last year came from renewables, Trump paused new solar and wind approvals on federal land and waters, just one of many actions he’s taken to deliberately slow clean energy deployment (while he later resumed review of solar projects, wind approvals remain paused and developers report that lack of agency staff is impacting project financing, purchasing, and construction start dates). Ironically, his fake energy emergency risks creating a real one. By sidelining clean energy and locking in costly fossil fuels, permitting laws and environmental reviews be damned, utilities will pass rising costs on to consumers. This is just as electricity demand is surging.

Action: The Trump administration ordered Equinor to halt construction of its fully permitted Empire Wind 1 farm, claiming, without evidence, that its underlying environmental analysis was rushed.

Impact: Although the Trump administration later allowed construction to resume, the abrupt halt sent a chilling message to investors: under Trump, even fully permitted projects aren’t safe. As with his tariff threats, the uncertainty over whether permits will be honored undermines the confidence needed to finance clean energy projects. This jacks up costs that will ultimately get passed on to American households.

Action: Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the DOE to prevent coal plants from shutting down, even if they violate environmental rules or drive up power costs.

Impact: Coal is the dirtiest and most expensive source of electricity on the grid. Trump’s order not only overrides state authority to regulate utilities, but it also forces consumers to foot the bill for aging, uneconomical plants. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has even floated restarting already shuttered coal plants. The result: Polluters rake in guaranteed profits while Americans get stuck with higher energy bills. All while cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable alternatives are available. 

Action: The Trump administration abruptly fired the entire staff overseeing the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), the $4.1 billion program that helps low-income families afford their utility bills. Weeks later, the White House proposed cutting the program entirely.

Impact: LIHEAP helps families pay for heating oil, weatherize homes, and avoid utility shutoffs. With no staff to distribute remaining funds, despite a congressional mandate to do so, advocates warned millions could be left without aid. The Department of Health and Human Services briefly rehired one employee to release the final round of funding, but the next day, Trump’s budget proposed eliminating the program altogether, calling it “unnecessary.” More than 6 million households could now face reduced or eliminated benefits, leaving them unable to afford basic heating or cooling.

Action: Trump announced sweeping tariffs on nearly every country across the globe, including our allies, claiming they’ve maintained unfair trade relationships with the U.S.

Impact: Even as the White House has walked back some tariffs (for now), and the Courts are considering the legality of Trump’s authority to impose them, much of the damage was already done. Energy markets have been thrown into turmoil. U.S. liquefied “natural” gas (LNG) is now positioned as a bargaining chip, after Trump floated that Europe could avoid tariffs by buying more American gas. Trading partners may ramp up purchase commitments to rebalance trade. This could potentially trigger volatile swings in household energy bills. Meanwhile, the ongoing uncertainty around Trump’s tariff whims is worsening supply chain disruptions for key electrical components. This is slowing the buildout of renewable energy and critical grid infrastructure and driving costs higher for new and existing projects.

Action: On his first day back in office, Trump lifted the freeze on LNG export approvals. His DOE later removed a major regulatory hurdle, further unleashing fossil fuel companies’ ability to sell gas overseas.

Impact: Even before Trump’s election, North American gas exports, driven by new U.S. projects, were on track to more than double by 2028. According to E&E News, EIA expects LNG-driven demand to push prices higher this year and next. Easing the path for new export projects means more gas going overseas—and higher energy costs at home.

Action: As Trump’s EPA shuts down environmental justice programs, all of the grants under the CCGP, including a project that installs solar panels in low-income neighborhoods, are under review, and some are “already slated to be terminated.” 

Impact: Terminating this program blocks cost-saving clean energy projects in disadvantaged communities overburdened by pollution and more significant climate risks, keeping energy bills high. Terminating this program risks the future of projects that are lowering utility costs, as well as providing clean drinking water and disaster shelters in disadvantaged communities. For example, New Haven, Connecticut, planned to use $20 million in community change grants to help low-income residents cut energy costs with energy-efficient home upgrades—but Trump’s freeze has left that funding in limbo.

Action: Trump’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), at the direction of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, eliminated GRRP, which funds energy efficiency upgrades in affordable housing.

Impact: Cutting this program raises energy costs for thousands of low-income renters, especially seniors and families in federal-assisted housing. The GRRP funds urgent repairs to keep tens of thousands of affordable housing units livable, including energy efficiency improvements like replacing or repairing heating and cooling systems and aging insulation or windows. Projects using the funds are required to keep units affordable for up to 25 years. They also leverage funds to secure other investments for significant repairs and renovations “Projects will fail,” said one affordable housing developer, “And these are projects that are already difficult to finance.” 

Action: Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, raising costs for energy infrastructure.

Impact: Higher costs for wind turbines, solar panels, power lines, and grid infrastructure make it harder to expand affordable energy to address growing electricity demand. Home energy systems like heat pumps and water heaters will also become more expensive. Grid Infrastructure costs will rise, worsening transformer shortages and delaying upgrades needed to meet growing demand. Tariffs will also spike car costs, as auto manufacturers rely on components imported from our trading partners.

Action: In response to Trump’s unprovoked trade war, Ontario, Canada, imposed a 25% retaliatory tariff on electricity exports to Michigan, Minnesota, and New York.

Impact: 1.5 million households in these states rely on Canadian hydropower to keep the lights on. Although Ontario has since temporarily suspended the tariff, if reinstated, these families would face higher electricity bills.

Action: Trump imposed a national tariff tax on imports from China, Canada, and Mexico, including on Canadian energy imports, triggering price spikes. While he’s temporarily delayed some tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods, a 10% national tariff tax on energy imported from Canada remains in place.

Impact: Trump’s national tariff tax will ultimately raise prices for all American consumers, with midwestern states hit the hardest. Because energy infrastructure like pipelines and refineries are slow to adapt, imports of foreign fuels are likely to continue with higher costs passed on to consumers. That means higher gas prices and fewer, more expensive clean energy projects. In states like Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, gas prices are expected to jump up to 50 cents per gallon. And, heating bills will climb as tariffs on methane gas from Canada, America’s largest supplier, get passed down to households.

Action: Trump’s EPA blocked $20 billion in grants from the GGRF’s National Clean Investment Fund and the Clean Communities Investment Accelerator programs, which fund clean energy projects in low-income communities. On March 11, the EPA attempted to formally (if not legally) revoke grants from those programs.

Impact: The purpose of GGRF programs is to lower energy costs for everyday Americans. Blocking these grants hampers clean energy development, particularly in communities that need lower energy costs the most. For example, the Climate United NEXT grant program helps communities historically left behind deploy clean energy projects that reduce pollution and cut energy bills. The Power Forward Communities grant program finances energy efficiency upgrades that help lower housing costs and utility bills while expanding and preserving affordable housing. While a federal court has blocked Trump’s EPA from illegally clawing back these grants for now, Trump’s efforts to terminate the program have left that funding in limbo and delayed projects that would deliver cost savings for the communities that need it most. It’s part of a broader “starve the beast” strategy: by dragging out uncertainty, they’re trying to force organizations to run out of funding and collapse.

Action: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers halted permits for 168 renewable energy projects on private lands to comply with Trump’s executive order.

Impact: Slowing the development of cleaner, more affordable energy keeps Americans reliant on costly fossil fuels. As electricity demand grows and Trump blocks clean energy projects, utilities will pass rising higher costs on to consumers. Simply put, we cannot meet our growing energy needs without renewables.

Action: Trump issued an executive order freezing all funds for energy programs appropriated by Congress through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

Impacts:

• LIHEAP Cuts: Trump’s freeze on the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) left vulnerable families struggling to afford heating and cooling costs. In Huntsville, Alabama alone, this move directly raised utility costs by $100 for hundreds of households.

• Weatherization Assistance Program Halted: This program helps tens of thousands of low-income families lower their energy bills through home upgrades, such as better insulation and other energy-efficiency improvements. Trump’s freeze could force states to delay or cancel projects. Before a federal judge’s recent ruling ordering the administration to release the funding, millions remained frozen in states like Colorado. But even in places where funds are now available, many recipients worry they are “just going to disappear again.” The uncertainty leaves a program designed to lower energy costs in limbo—right when families need relief the most.

• Home Energy Rebates Blocked: Without these grants, home energy upgrades could cost families up to $14,000 more. Most projects would be at risk of cancellation, locking families into higher utility bills. Arizona, Colorado, and Rhode Island have already suspended their rebate programs in response.

Action: Trump issued an executive order freezing all funds for energy programs appropriated by Congress through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

Impact:

• Rural Energy Costs on the Rise: Programs like the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) Program and the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) help rural communities secure affordable clean energy. The freeze put billions in rural clean energy funding in limbo, potentially increasing costs for millions of residents in states like Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Nebraska—in places where Trump won his biggest margins.

• Solar for All Disruptions: This IRA-funded program will provide clean energy access to over 900,000 households in low-income communities. While the freeze has been lifted (for now) as a result of a court order, the chaos is creating uncertainty that could discourage contractors from taking on federally-backed projects. The Solar for All program is designed to lower energy costs, but funding freezes are stripping away a critical tool when states like Pennsylvania, Indiana, Texas, and Florida need it most. Administrator Zeldin has signaled his latest effort to undermine this program by ordering an audit through the Office of Inspector General.

• CPRG Grants Chaos: Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) help state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments advance clean energy and address local energy challenges. Many fund building efficiency projects that help reduce household utility bills. While the freeze appears to be lifted due to a court order, the chaotic pause got in the way of projects that would deliver affordable clean energy to the grid. Cutting CPRG funding would raise costs for home upgrades and lock in higher utility bills for families. The St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin risk losing funding for energy efficiency projects that lower costs for the Tribe’s low-income residents.

Action: Trump’s day one executive order also froze funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, cutting support for building Electric Vehicle charging stations. After multiple federal judges blocked the administration’s efforts to gut the program, Trump’s Department of Transportation once again attempted to sabotage the NEVI program with an illegal power grab thinly disguised as a bureaucratic update.

Impact: Without this federal investment, rural communities in states like Ohio and Texas will struggle to build charging infrastructure, making it harder for residents to switch to cost-saving EVs. Fewer EVs on the road means higher demand for gasoline, driving up prices at the pump for everyone—hittingdrivers in rural communities and working families hardest. The uncertainty around federal investment also threatens the auto industry in states like Michigan, where billions have been invested to attract EV manufacturing. Industry leaders point to a lack of publicly accessible chargers as one major barrier to domestic demand. Trump’s NEVI sabotage undermines efforts like Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s goal to install 100,000 chargers by 2030, slowing EV adoption, threatening the state’s clean energy economy and thousands of high-quality jobs in the state.

Action: Trump froze federal leasing for new offshore wind projects and onshore projects on federal lands and blocked permits for in-progress projects.

Impact: Delaying these projects reduces future grid capacity and raises electricity prices by ensuring that supply can’t keep up with growing energy demand. Coastal states are counting on gigawatts of energy from offshore wind and are now scrambling to fill the gap to avoid brownouts. Thousands of jobs have been lost or are at risk because of these project cancellations and delays. And, increased uncertainty in the wind energy market is driving higher costs for new and existing projects. 

Action: Trump lifted a freeze on LNG export approvals, paving the way for fossil fuel companies to sell more gas overseas.

Impact: More LNG exports means higher gas prices for Americans. A Department of Energy study found that unfettered LNG exports could increase U.S. gas prices by over 30% by linking them to the significantly more expensive global market. This could raise energy costs for the average American household by more than $100 a year by 2050.