The Trump administration has cancelled €6.5 billion in approved clean energy subsidies across 16 US states, with California among the states affected. All of the states voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in the last presidential election.
The US Department of Energy said 223 projects were cancelled after a review. It said the projects did not adequately meet the country’s energy needs or were not economically viable. White House budget director Russell Vought said the administration was cancelling money that was driving the left’s climate agenda.
The move comes after other steps that have supported fossil fuels. The administration recently provided more than €530 million in aid to try to revive the coal industry, which is the most polluting fossil fuel.
In California, Governor Gavin Newsom said the private sector has already committed €8.5 billion to the state’s hydrogen project, the Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems Alliance. He said the cuts threaten more than 200,000 jobs.
California Democratic Senator Alex Padilla called the cancellations vengeful and short-sighted. Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, said Trump and Vought were treating American families and their livelihoods as pawns in a political game.
The cancellations mark a wider shift away from renewable energy under the Trump administration. For more coverage of this story and related policy updates, see our news page.
