President Donald Trump’s Unleashing American Energy executive order — designed to “unleash America’s affordable and reliable energy and natural resources” — has put the brakes on financial disbursements under the former administration’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs and Inflation Reduction acts, a move that affects dozens of initiatives across Nevada.
A list compiled by the Nevada Conservation League and shared with The Nevada Independent shows an expansive number of nonprofit organizations, state and local agencies, agricultural producers, small businesses and others across Nevada that rely on federal funding for projects ranging from programs that provide low-income households with firewood to those that enhance street safety.
Two programs picked up where failed legislatively-mandated programs left off — one to build electric vehicle (EV) charging stations along the state’s highways and another to help grow residential and community solar programs.
EV charging stations
Since 2022, Nevada was awarded $38 million through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program to fund 80 percent of construction costs for between 38 and 45 charging stations, with buildout to begin this year. But the funding wasn’t awarded upfront — instead, it would be paid upon completion of NEVI-compliant projects. (It is standard for funding to be paid after construction for formula grant-based reimbursement programs.)
Only about 1 percent of the nation’s electric vehicle charging stations are in Nevada, primarily in urban areas. Nevada’s remote highways pose a challenge to EV drivers, who sometimes must go hundreds of miles between charging stations.
The program would have aided a stalled effort by NV Energy to accelerate buildout of electric infrastructure, including 120 EV charging stations, that lawmakers pushed for in a massive 2021 energy bill (SB448). Five sites have been constructed thus far, according to the utility, with an additional 35 sites under design or construction. But NDOT’s electrification plan would have picked up where the utility’s program dropped off.
Solar For All
Federal funding for the Nevada Clean Energy Fund’s (NCEF) Solar For All program, which is designed to help with solar installations on single-family homes and affordable housing developments, as well as community solar projects and workforce development, has been frozen and unfrozen multiple times within the past week.
As of publication, the funding was frozen, along with money for its clean bus program and to assist with home energy upgrades and new water infrastructure for the Walker River Paiute Tribe.
In 2017, Nevada lawmakers passed SB407, establishing the Nevada Clean Energy Fund to help finance clean energy projects statewide. The nonprofit organization launched in early 2022 and quickly brought in millions of dollars in federal funding, including $156 million for statewide solar projects.
The fund launched the workforce training portion of its program in December, and solar projects installed through the program were expected to help at least 20,000 households reduce their electric bills by 20 percent.
During the last week, NCEF staff went from “actively tracking the administration’s policies and associated federal litigation to identify and mitigate any effects on our programs” to regaining access to the full $156 million, “ensuring continued investment in solar energy projects across Nevada,” to have it paused again with “no explanation as to why,” Janette Zambrano, NCEF’s senior manager of community engagement, said in an email.
It also affects a state effort to build out community solar projects, which allow individuals or businesses to subscribe and benefit from a single solar array, rather than install individual panels.
In 2019, state lawmakers passed a bill that required NV Energy to build between six and 20 community solar projects across the state, but thus far, less than a handful have been built. (The utility released wrapped up nominations for another round of construction, with four additional projects in the works.)
In previous interviews with The Nevada Independent, the utility said it was partnering with the Nevada Clean Energy Fund to leverage federal funding to build additional community solar projects, with timing being determined by how quickly the money arrived.
But with the confusion surrounding federal funding, recipients are navigating the uncertainty in real time. Some are discouraged, others optimistic.
“Our commitment remains steadfast in implementing these funds to benefit Nevada communities,” Zambrano said.