On Monday, April 22, the Biden Administration and the United States Environmental Protection Agency announced that the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection was selected to receive $62,450,000 of funding through the “Solar for All” grant. The grant will be used to provide solar energy to low-income and marginalized communities. The award was part of President Biden’s $891 billion Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022.
In an interview with The Daily Campus, Shayla Powell, a public affairs specialist at the EPA, stated that the awards would be overseen by the Office of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund in the EPA.
“After awards are made, EPA’s Office of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund will oversee the grant recipients, including their adherence to their commitment to maximizing access to the program for the most disadvantaged and low-income households in the geography the recipients are serving,” said Powell.
Powell continued by saying the EPA carefully reviewed each application and that the agency is confident in these applicants’ ability to provide meaningful services to the low-income and disadvantaged communities they are seeking to serve.
“EPA has full confidence that the applicants selected will deliver on the goals of the program effectively. All selected applicants submitted detailed plans both to provide meaningful benefits to the communities they will serve, and to ensure those communities are involved in the design and implementation of the program. 100% of the Solar for All program is required to benefit low-income and disadvantaged communities including communities of color, rural, and Tribes, and all selected applicants committed to delivering at least 20% electricity cost savings to the 900,000 households that the program will serve,” said Powell.
EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said the programs, of which the Connecticut grant is included, will advance solar energy throughout the country.
“The selectees will advance solar energy initiatives across the country, creating hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs, saving $8 billion in energy costs for families, delivering cleaner air and combating climate change,” said Regan in a statement.
When asked if the EPA has a timeline for when the physical infrastructure required for solar energy might be started or completed or when people might see the effect of this action in their communities, Powell only commented that construction will not be able to begin until after winter of this year.
“EPA required applicants to have plans to begin deploying financial assistance to solar projects within one year of the award and to expend all funds within five years of the award. Many of the selected applications are using EPA funds to expand existing low-income solar programs. These programs will begin funding projects with EPA funding as soon as administrative paperwork is complete — EPA anticipates completion in the winter of 2024,” said Powell.
When asked what will be considered affordable housing units eligible for the program, Powell said that beneficiaries will be notified by the recipients of the grant via websites generated for the program.
“After awards are made, recipients will launch websites and provide other avenues for sharing information with potential program beneficiaries within the geography they intend to serve,” Powell said.
She continued by providing insight into what individuals will and will not be considered “low-income” for the purposes of the program.
“Low-income and disadvantaged communities include (a) communities identified as disadvantaged by the CEJST mapping tool; (b) a limited number of additional communities identified as disadvantaged by the EJScreen mapping tool; (c) geographically dispersed low-income households; and (d) properties providing affordable housing,” said Powell.
Finally, Powell reflected on the broader impacts this program is expected to have throughout the state and country.
“While the programs aren’t explicitly linked to one another, Solar for All is expected to create nearly 200,000 high-quality clean energy jobs, supported by workforce training models that prepare individuals from low-income and disadvantaged communities for middle-class career pathways in solar energy deployment,” said Powell.
New England Regional Administrator of the EPA, David W. Cash, additionally commented on the significance of the action, announced on Earth Day, to equitable access to the green energy transition.
“Today, across the United States, we are celebrating more than just Earth Day; we are celebrating Solar for All — a significant step forward in our commitment to equitable energy access and environmental justice,” said Cash.
Similarly, Connecticut DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes commended the administration for the award and its focus on investing in underserved communities.
“I applaud President Biden for designing a program that delivers the affordability and resiliency advantages of solar energy to homes and communities that deserve further investment,” said Dykes.