District of Columbia
Federal Courts Block Trump EPA Effort to Revoke $22 Billion in Federal Climate Grants
Two courts this week dealt blows to the Trump administration’s attempts to withdraw clean energy and climate grants. A federal appeals court on Tuesday ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency could not terminate $20 billion in clean energy grants awarded…
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Key points
- Federal courts ruled against the Trump administration’s efforts to cancel $22 billion in Inflation Reduction Act grants.
- The D.C. Circuit Court granted the EPA one week to appeal a decision restoring $20 billion in clean energy funding to the Supreme Court.
- A federal judge ordered the EPA to restore $1.6 billion in block grants by Sept. 30 despite agency arguments regarding reduced staffing.
NewsWK — Federal courts have dealt two setbacks to the Trump administration’s effort to terminate more than $22 billion in clean energy and environmental grants authorized under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act.
According to a report first published by Stateline, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled against the Environmental Protection Agency, reinstating a lower court injunction that prevents EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin from rescinding $20 billion intended for nonprofit organizations. The appellate court granted the EPA a one-week stay to file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court before any grant funds can be accessed.
In a separate decision, U.S. District Judge Richard Mark Gergel denied a request from the Trump administration to pause an order compelling the reinstatement of $1.6 billion in climate justice grants. Judge Gergel affirmed a prior ruling that the administration’s termination of the Environmental and Climate Justice Block Grant Program was unlawful, setting a deadline of Sept. 30 for the agency to process the funds before statutory authority expires.
The lawsuit challenging the funding cancellation was spearheaded by The Sustainability Institute, a South Carolina non-profit, alongside 10 other organizations and six municipalities, including Nashville, Tennessee, and Baltimore, Maryland. Congress had originally set aside nearly $3 billion for the grant program under the Inflation Reduction Act.
In opposing the court order, EPA Associate Deputy Administrator Travis Voyles argued in court filings that the agency lacks the administrative capacity and staffing required to execute the grants after shutting down environmental justice offices across the agency. While no local municipalities in Northwest Florida were parties to the litigation, the federal court rulings highlight ongoing constitutional disputes regarding executive authority over congressionally appropriated funds.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by our editorial team.
Based on reporting by Nada Hassanein originally published by Stateline. Read the original story.
