Court Blocks Trump From Reclaiming What From Biden?

A federal appeals court has once again blocked the Trump administration’s effort to reclaim billions of dollars in climate funding that was awarded under former President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act.

The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Tuesday reinstated part of a preliminary injunction preventing the Environmental Protection Agency from pulling back billions of dollars allocated through the law’s “green bank” program. The decision reverses an earlier ruling by a smaller panel of judges that had lifted the injunction.

After taking office, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced plans to recover roughly $20 billion distributed under the Biden administration for climate and clean energy projects. The funding had been awarded to green banks that were expected to finance projects aimed at reducing pollution and addressing climate-related initiatives.

The Trump administration argued the EPA had the authority to terminate the program and recover the funds. Following Tuesday’s ruling, an EPA spokesperson said the agency is reviewing the court’s decision and considering its next steps.

In its opinion, the appeals court said the EPA’s effort to terminate the funding likely conflicted with the Inflation Reduction Act because the agency appeared to base its decision primarily on a disagreement with the program’s underlying policy.

Not all of the judges agreed. Several argued the organizations challenging the funding freeze had not demonstrated why emergency court intervention remained necessary after Republicans repealed portions of the program through the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which eliminated unobligated funding from the initiative.

One of the grant recipients, Climate United Fund, welcomed the ruling, arguing the court confirmed the EPA lacked legal authority to freeze or terminate grants that had already been awarded.

The organization also said the funding was intended to help lower energy costs, support job creation and improve public health, adding that it plans to continue pursuing legal action to restore access to the money.

The latest ruling marks another legal setback for the Trump administration as it continues efforts to roll back major climate programs created under the Biden administration while broader litigation over the future of the Inflation Reduction Act continues.