- The Trump administration scrapped 223 clean energy projects worth $7.56 billion and froze $18 billion in New York infrastructure funds.
- Democrats accused Trump of using the government shutdown to punish blue states and undermine climate policy.
The Trump administration terminated hundreds of clean energy projects and froze billions in infrastructure funds for New York, escalating its shutdown battle with Democrats.
The Department of Energy said on Thursday, October 2, it cancelled 321 financial awards backing 223 projects, claiming $7.56 billion in taxpayer savings. The agency also said the projects, run by the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, failed to advance national energy needs or provide a return on investment.
The department did not release the project list, so recipients have 30 days to appeal. Some have already started.
Meanwhile, Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, called the cancelled awards “Green New Scam funding” that advanced “the Left’s climate agenda.” He listed affected states, including California, New York and 14 others that Trump lost in 2024.
Furthermore, California Governor Gavin Newsom said Washington cancelled up to $1.2 billion for a hydrogen project that supported tens of thousands of jobs. “In Trump’s America, energy policy is set by the highest bidder, economics and common sense be damned,” Newsom said.
The Department of Transportation froze nearly $18 billion for New York’s Second Avenue subway and Hudson Tunnel projects, citing race- and sex-based contracting rules. The agency said those requirements violated civil rights laws and wasted taxpayer money.
“Thanks to the Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries shutdown, USDOT’s review of New York’s unconstitutional practices will take more time,” the department said, adding that furloughs slowed the process.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul called the freeze “political payback and an attack on New York.” She said Trump used the shutdown “to hurt the American people.”