SOLAR Act
Solar Energy: USDA Funding Limits on Farmland
The SOLAR Act is currently in the early stages of the legislative process within the House Committee on Agriculture. It was recently sent to a subcommittee for review and is considered active. There are no further actions scheduled at this time.
Legislative Progress
While this bill has support from some farm groups, it faces a tough path in a divided Congress where many leaders want to expand solar energy rather than limit its growth.
Key Points
- This bill stops the Department of Agriculture from giving money to solar energy projects that take up productive farmland. The goal is to keep farm ground available for growing food and raising livestock instead of being covered by solar panels.
- Small projects are still allowed to get funding. This includes projects smaller than 5 acres or projects up to 50 acres if the farmer uses most of the electricity on their own property.
- Larger projects can only get federal money if they get a thumbs-up from the local county or city government. This gives local communities more say in where big solar farms are built.
- If a project gets local approval, the owners must create a plan to protect the soil. They also have to set aside money to take down the solar panels and fix the land once the project is finished so it can be farmed again.
- If a company takes the government money but fails to follow the soil protection or cleanup rules, they have to pay all the money back to the Department of Agriculture.
Impact Analysis
Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.
Milestones
Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
News
No related news coverage found for this legislation yet.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
SOLAR Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
(5)Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.