US Appeals Court Rules Against Trump Administration's Termination of Climate Grants

A US federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that the Trump administration likely acted unlawfully when it attempted to cancel approximately $20 billion in clean energy grants. The ruling concerns the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a program established by Congress through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act under the Biden administration. The fund was designed to provide federal money to nonprofit organizations to invest in clean energy infrastructure, energy efficient buildings, and small energy projects.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin sought to dismantle the program, citing concerns over fraud, waste, and mismanagement. Zeldin described the fund as an example of government waste and criticized the distribution of tax dollars to what he called far left activist groups. In response, the nonprofit recipients sued, arguing that the administration was illegally withholding funds approved by Congress due to policy disagreements rather than evidence of fraud.

The full US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia reversed a previous decision by a three judge panel that had sided with the administration. The court stated that terminating the grants based solely on a policy disagreement likely violated the Inflation Reduction Act. Despite the ruling, the funds will not be released immediately because the decision has been temporarily put on hold to allow the EPA to seek intervention from the US Supreme Court.

Outlets with a center lean focused on the legal ruling and the court's finding that the administration was wrong to terminate the funds. An outlet with a center left lean framed the decision as a blow to the president's broader effort to dismantle Biden era climate policies.