As Electricity Costs Spike, Renewable Energy Divestments Emerge as Theme of Midterms

The Trump administration’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year pulls the plug on federal funding for solar and wind development. It cuts energy efficiency programs by nearly 70 percent, eliminates state and local weatherization subsidies, and continues to “claw back” billions in Congressional allocations for renewable energy projects. Under the president’s “Energy Dominance Agenda,” the administration is boosting federal funding for fossil fuel production, with nuclear and geothermal a subsidiary focus. Initiatives include the proposed creation of an Office of Baseload Power, with a first-year $3.5 billion budget to subsidize coal and natural gas expansions for electricity generation. The Trump administration incorporated these priorities in the spending plans for the Departments of Energy and Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency totaling more than $74 billion....