On June 28, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched a $7 billion grant competition to increase access for low-income households to solar energy. The “Solar for All” competition, created by the Inflation Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) seeks to award grants to states, territories, Tribal governments, municipalities and eligible nonprofits. The grants will create and expand low-income solar programs that provide financing and technical assistance, such as workforce development, to enable low-income and disadvantaged communities to deploy and benefit from residential solar. The Solar for All competition is intended to guarantee that low-income households receive household savings, community ownership, energy resiliency and other benefits that come with distributed solar.
The program is broken into three award options, based on the targeted recipient:
- State & Territory Programs, which serve specific geographies
- American Indian and Alaska Native Programs, targeting these communities
- Multi-state Programs, which target common barriers across multiple states
The application deadline is September 26, 2023; however, a Notice of Intent is required for all expected applicants, beginning at the end of July for those projects in D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Eligible applicants to Solar for All include states, territories, Tribal governments, municipalities and eligible nonprofit recipients. Coalitions, led by an eligible lead applicant, are also eligible to apply to this competition; however, there are limitations on the types of entities that can participate in those coalitions.
