Trump administration deepens crackdown on solar and wind tax credits

Source: Politico

08/15/2025 02:44 PM EDT Updated: 08/15/2025 05:37 PM EDT


The Trump administration announced a policy Friday that will make it even harder for wind and solar projects to take advantage of federal tax credits — though the changes did not go as far as some in the clean energy industry had feared.

The new Treasury Department guidance would undo years of existing practice defining when a solar or wind project has started construction, a key metric that spells out when developers can claim lucrative tax credits.

Treasury’s actions aim to fulfill pledges President Donald Trump made to House conservatives to secure their support for the massive spending and tax law he signed last month. But the crackdown on wind and solar has already drawn pushback from centrist Republicans and GOP lawmakers from wind-heavy states. Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and John Curtis (R-Utah) placed holds on three of Trump’s Treasury nominees after failing to secure assurances on the new tax credit guidance.

But Friday’s guidance appeared to strike a compromise between the two sides, winning tentative praise from both the House Freedom Caucus and the moderate Republicans, though the senators did not indicate whether they plan to lift their holds.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/15/trump-solar-wind-tax-00512034