A coalition of nonprofits under fire from President Donald Trump’s appointees says it will begin doling out money from a $2 billion climate grant it received during the Biden era — despite the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempts to claw back the funds.
“When the EPA made a grant to us and grants to other awardees, there’s an official contract that the government enters into,” said Tim Mayopoulos, the CEO of Power Forward Communities, in an interview with POLITICO. “The agreement has not been terminated, and we have an obligation to fulfill it.”
He said his group, an umbrella for five nonprofits that include United Way and Habitat for Humanity, will deploy its initial $539 million disbursement from the grant over the coming weeks and months to help communities across the country build energy-efficient housing.
Asked for comment on the status of the fund, EPA referred POLITICO to a videotaped statement Feb. 12 in which Administrator Lee Zeldin demanded that a total of $20 billion in Biden-era green grants be returned — vowing, “The days of irresponsibly shoveling boat loads of cash to far-left activist groups in the name of environmental justice and climate equity are over.”
