After EPA cancels $62M Maine solar grant, Governor's Energy Office pushes back

An aerial view shows a one-story building with solar panels on the flat roof.

FILE PHOTO / COURTESY VEROGY Connecticut solar company Verogy installed 2,464 solar panels atop a 68,000-square-foot warehouse at 54 Milliken St. in Portland last year. The array has enough capacity to power more than 111 average-sized homes for a year.

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By Laurie Schreiber

Job creation will be among the casualties with the loss of $62 million in federal funding that would have expanded solar energy availability for low-income households in Maine and to reduce barriers for using solar energy across the state.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency terminated the Solar for All grant that was awarded in April 2024.

“Canceling the program deprives Maine of access to affordable solar, energy storage and the skilled electricians, installers and construction workers needed to meet our energy and economic needs now and in the future,” said Dan Burgess, director of the Governor’s Energy Office, the grant recipient.

The federal Solar for All program was designed to expand access to affordable, reliable solar energy and storage while growing the state's clean energy workforce.

Maine’s Solar for All was expected to help an estimated 20,000 low-income Maine households save between $380 and $1,400 annually on energy bills, the Governor's Energy Office said.

The proposed program also included funding to support workforce training for over 700 Maine residents in electrical work, construction, maintenance and repair and other essential building trades.

Since December 2024, the Governor’s Energy Office has worked with EPA to meet program timelines and requirements.

In July 2025, EPA approved Maine's plan to implement the program, with competitive funding opportunities planned for this year and benefits expected to reach Maine people by 2026.

The Governor’s Energy Office is reviewing the EPA notice and working to determine next steps in consultation with the Office of the Maine Attorney General.

The EPA launched the $7 billion Solar For All competition in 2023 to help low-income and disadvantaged communities benefit from residential and community solar and energy storage projects. Nationwide, the program was expected to generate over $350 million in annual savings on electric bills and create an estimated 200,000 jobs. The EPA estimated that 900,000 homes around the country would have received solar energy access as a result of the grant program.

Maine's application was one of 60 projects awarded funding.

“Pulling this funding after so much effort has been put into the development of this program undermines economic opportunity and public trust,” U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine 1st District, said in a letter to the EPA.

Maine’s clean energy workforce reached nearly 15,600 jobs in 2023, growing at a rate nearly twice that of the state’s overall workforce since 2019. The Governor’s Energy Office has a goal to expand Maine’s clean energy workforce to 30,000 positions by 2030, as part of its pursuit to achieve 100% clean retail electricity by 2040.