5 Ways the Biden Administration Will Likely Encourage Solar Power

If you’ve been thinking about starting a solar project but want to understand more from a political standpoint before making a decision, we examine the latest on the new Biden administration’s support for solar energy in this blog.

First, some background: According to the United Nations’ International Panel on Climate Change, to keep global temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius, nations around the world need to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 7.6 percent a year for the next ten years.[1] While this may be a rather lofty goal, it underpins the growing consensus that significant action must be taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Biden administration has made it a stated goal to pressure power generation companies and utilities to reduce emissions by an ambitious 90 percent by 2030,[2] making solar power generation a more attractive alternative to coal and natural gas.

The Biden Green Plan

According to his campaign website, Joe Biden wants to “put the United States on an irreversible path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050.”[3] The President-elect has pledged to spend two trillion dollars on clean energy and sustainable infrastructure in his first four-year term. His administration will “move ambitiously to generate clean, American-made electricity,” [4] which includes solar, to achieve a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035.

5 Steps Biden Can Take

With the U.S. Senate races decided in Georgia, and increasing bipartisan support for solar across the country, Congress should be able to pass green energy bills, suggesting that the future of solar power generation is bright. Here are five things the new administration will likely implement:

  1. Create an economic stimulus package that rebuilds infrastructure like bridges and roads, but also creates jobs by investing in renewable energy.
  2. Recommit to the Paris Climate Accords. President-elect Biden has stated his intention to rejoin the Paris Climate Accords, which creates a global framework for avoiding climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
  3. Strengthen the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. Even without legislative support, the administration can impose regulations to increase the viability of solar and other alternative energy sources.
  4. Reduce fossil-fuel subsidies. Biden has pledged to reduce or eliminate $20 billion in subsidies to fossil fuel companies.
  5. Eliminate tariffs on solar modules and inverters. These tariffs mean that U.S. consumers pay twice what this technology costs the rest of the world. President-Elect Biden should ask the International Trade Commission to review whether these tariffs are still needed.

A National Focus on Alternative Energy

We expect to see the incoming administration lead a national focus on alternative energy sources, like solar power and other renewables.

Next Steps

There are many things to consider when thinking about solar energy installations. We’re here to help you make sense of the entire picture.

To learn if solar is the right move for your business, contact us for a free solar feasibility report.


[1] “Emissions Gap Report,” UN Environment Programme, Last accessed 12/14/20, https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/press-release/cut-global-emissions-76-percent-every-year-next-decade-meet-15degc.

[2] “Biden and Electric Utilities Are Split on Emissions Goals,” Scientific American, Last accessed 12/14/20, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/biden-and-electric-utilities-are-split-on-emissions-goals.

[3] “The Biden Plan To Build A Modern, Sustainable Infrastructure And An Equitable Clean Energy Future,” joebiden.com, Last accessed 12/11/20, https://joebiden.com/clean-energy/.

[4] “The Biden Plan To Build A Modern, Sustainable Infrastructure And An Equitable Clean Energy Future,” joebiden.com, Last accessed 12/11/20, https://joebiden.com/clean-energy/.