Grant recipients sue US Energy Department over nearly 300 cancellations

On September 10, Reuters reported that clean-energy and environmental grant recipients filed a proposed class action against the US Department of Energy seeking to revive nearly 300 terminated grants worth billions of dollars. The plaintiffs allege that 284 cancellations concentrated in Democratic-controlled states violated constitutional protections; the department denied that political considerations drove the decisions. Companies relying on public climate funding should treat award rescission and appropriations disputes as material project risks, with contemporaneous records on milestones, reliance costs and termination rights. For law firms, the dispute expands ESG advice into administrative law, constitutional claims and project-finance contingency planning.