Solar for All State Support Initiative

Solar for All was a $7 billion competitive grant program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It funded states, tribes, nonprofits, and other eligible recipients to expand residential solar for low-income households and disadvantaged communities.

Solar for All was the largest ever infusion of federal funding into low-income clean energy programs, and it would have resulted in 20-70% utility bill reductions for low-income households for decades to come.

Congress appropriated the funds to support solar deployment from 2024 through 2029. However, in August 2025 EPA sent termination letters to all Solar for All grantees. The terminations have been challenged in several federal courts, and the litigation is ongoing.

CESA assisted 40+ states with their Solar for All program designs and applications. After awards were made, CESA provided extensive support to all 54 non-Tribal Solar for All grantees, including:

• Hosting office hours for grantees, attended by 80-200+ people per week
• Creating and compiling resources to help grantees navigate federal requirements and develop effective programs
• Coordinating crisis response efforts for grantees throughout federal policy changes

A policy brief by the Initiative for Energy Justice noted that CESA's Solar for All coordination work provided a model framework for managing complexity in large-scale federal programs.

"Our analysis reveals that Solar for All's most significant innovation may not be just its $7 billion investment, but rather the emergence of the CESA as essential coordination infrastructure that enables implementation despite unprecedented federal policy upheaval... CESA functions as what we term 'missing infrastructure' for federal program success; demonstrating that large-scale federal investments require dedicated intermediary organizations to translate federal resources into implementable state and local programs... CESA's approach builds on coordination models proven successful in other contexts, but integrates them at unprecedented scale and complexity."

All CESA’s Solar for All resources are available for free here.