Attorney General Kris Mayes is leading a legal charge against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its abrupt cancellation of the $7 billion Solar for All program, a key initiative for providing clean, affordable energy to low-income and disadvantaged communities; the program's termination has drawn the ire of several states and plaintiffs, with lawsuits filed in response to what is cited as an illegal clawback of funds already awarded for solar projects that promised substantial economic and environmental benefits, according to an announcement by the Arizona attorney general's office.
Together with Arizona, states rallied against the decision that has left agreed-upon solar initiatives in limbo after significant investments in planning and stakeholder engagement, initiatives that would have lowered electricity costs for more than 11,000 Arizona households provided thousands of jobs, and pushed 61 megawatts of new solar deployment preventing, in turn, at least 96,000 tons of CO2 from entering Arizona’s atmosphere annually, and the termination also impacts a $25 million grant to the Hopi Tribe for solar and battery installations in nearly 600 homes on their reservation - many of which had no previous access to electricity.
This legal battle against EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin comes in the wake of actions by the current administration prioritizing fossil fuels, which included President Trump signing the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” a piece of legislation targeting unobligated funds for the Solar for All program, however, the EPA has been accused of overstepping by halting the program entirely despite no congressional directive to cancel existing funds.
Two lawsuits are at the forefront; the first, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington by Attorney General Mayes and her counterparts from states including Minnesota and Washington among several others, this lawsuit alleges violations of the Administrative Procedure Act and breaches of the U.S. Constitution's Separation of Powers Doctrine, while a separate action in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims pursues compensation for the perceived unlawful breach of the grant agreements EPA entered with the states the complaint, led by Mayes and Maryland's attorney general, includes a broad coalition of state attorneys general and several governors.
With a history of championing renewable energy and fighting for cost savings in Arizona, Attorney General Mayes is taking a stand with a two-pronged legal approach to hold EPA accountable for its actions, she has previously co-authored Arizona's renewable energy standards and has been steadfast in protecting solar investment in her state, the outcomes of these lawsuits could set precedent for how federal commitments to renewable energy are upheld moving forward.
