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The U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service on 18 August issued revised rules that tighten the thresholds wind and solar developers must meet to qualify for federal Production and Investment Tax Credits. The notice eliminates the long-standing “Five Percent Safe Harbor,” which had allowed projects to lock in credits after incurring 5 % of total costs. Developers must now demonstrate “physical work of a significant nature,” such as setting anchor bolts or pouring foundation pads, and the facilities must enter service within four calendar years of construction. Projects of 1.5 megawatts or smaller remain eligible under previous criteria. The guidance implements President Donald Trump’s 7 July executive order enforcing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which phases out renewable-energy subsidies the administration argues distort markets and rely on foreign supply chains. Industry groups including the Solar Energy Industries Association said the change threatens small-business installers and could raise power prices, while buyers’ groups welcomed the clarity on qualification standards. Separately, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will no longer support new wind and solar installations on productive farmland. The USDA has provided more than $2 billion in grants and loan guarantees for such projects through its Rural Energy for America Program; that assistance now ends as part of a broader shift away from federal backing for large-scale renewable energy.
