President Donald Trump’s administration is poised to block the Solar Energy Investment Tax Credit (SEITC), an Obama-era tax credit that is helping fuel the expansion of the solar industry.
The administration on Wednesday rejected a request from a coalition of states to extend the SEITC, a federal program that provides subsidies for homeowners and businesses that build solar panels.
The federal government has awarded about $3.2 billion in grants to more than 2,000 solar projects since Trump took office, and has approved more than half of them, according to the White House.
The SEITCO was established by the Obama administration in 2008, and provides tax credits for homeowners, businesses and individuals who build solar systems.
The Solar Energy Infrastructure Finance Corporation, an arm of the Energy Department that manages the SEIFC, had planned to extend it through 2020 but was told in a letter Wednesday that Trump’s Administration will not renew the program.
The Trump administration, however, has expressed concern that the solar subsidy is not as effective as promised.
“As the Trump Administration considers whether to extend Solar Energy Initiative tax credits, it is important to recognize that these solar subsidies are not as robust as they should be,” the White White House said in the letter.
“We will not extend the Solar Infrastructure Finance Program or the SEIB, and will therefore remain in the position that we have been for more than a year.”
The SEIB was created in 2015 under the Obama Administration to help fund the expansion and development of solar energy, including through the development of a state-level solar portfolio tax credit.
The solar credit is not refundable.
The president has repeatedly called on the Obama White House to extend subsidies, and the Trump administration has repeatedly denied that it will.
President Trump and SolarCity are committed to continuing to expand the market for solar energy across the country, and we are pleased to continue our efforts in this direction,” the company said in an emailed statement.””
President Trump has consistently called on Solar City to provide solar panels to American homes and businesses, and he has promised to do so,” the administration said in a statement Wednesday.
“President Trump and SolarCity are committed to continuing to expand the market for solar energy across the country, and we are pleased to continue our efforts in this direction,” the company said in an emailed statement.
“The White House is committed to supporting all American homeowners and business owners in building a solar portfolio for their home, and this will continue as the administration continues to work with Congress to extend solar energy tax credits across the United States,” it continued.
The Whitehouse did not say if the Trump transition team had been informed of the decision to reject the SEIFTC extension.
A spokesman for the president did not immediately respond to a request for comment.