Zeldin Says EPA Scraps $29 Billion in Green Energy Grants Amid Fraud Probe

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin said he has revoked roughly $29 billion in green-energy grants after an internal review led by the Department of Government Efficiency, the cost-cutting unit installed by the Trump administration. Zeldin told reporters the savings effort is intended to “account for every single dollar that goes through the agency.” According to the administrator, the review uncovered instances in which money from the Inflation Reduction Act was diverted outside the agency. He alleged that about $20 billion was placed in an external bank and routed through eight nongovernmental organizations with ties to former Obama and Biden officials. One nonprofit linked to voting-rights advocate Stacey Abrams received $2 billion in 2024 after reporting just $100 the previous year, Zeldin said. The disclosures come as DOGE widens its presence across federal departments. Documents obtained by Wired show DOGE operatives at the Small Business Administration set up an unofficial X social-media account in February to solicit whistleblower complaints, bypassing the agency’s communications staff, a move government auditors described as highly unusual.