Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) demonstrates active and mostly positive engagement on US climate policy. The group strongly supports federal climate regulation and advocates for ambitious state-level rooftop solar policies. SEIA's CEO Abigail Ross Hopper is vocal about the need for ambitious government policy to respond to climate change and continues to support ambitious implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Top-Line Messaging on Climate Policy: SEIA demonstrates active and positive top-line messaging on climate policy. In a February 2022 joint letter to Congressional Leadership, the group advocated for policies to achieve GHG emissions reductions in line with a 1.5°C target. SEIA’s CEO has frequently advocated for policymakers to increase the ambition of government regulation on climate change, including during the group’s December 2023 advocacy event on Capitol Hill. SEIA stated support for the COP26 conference in Glasgow, specifically supporting the “momentum with promises to finance investments in solar.”
Engagement with Climate-Related Policy: SEIA demonstrates mostly positive positions on climate-related policies at the state and federal level. The group’s CEO has consistently advocated for federal policy to facilitate investment in solar energy, including in a December 2023 press release and an August 2023 press release in support of the IRA’s solar and storage manufacturing incentives. Previously, SEIA organized an August 2022 industry letter to Arizona Senators Sinema and Kelly that advocated for them to support the passage of the IRA for the sake of its solar and storage provisions. SEIA also advocated for distributed solar policies, particularly in states where policymakers have acted to roll back rooftop solar incentives. For example, the group’s CEO published a December 2023 press release that opposed the California Public Utilities Commission decision to further weaken its net energy metering program, which builds upon the regulatory body’s initial actions to disincentivize rooftop solar two years prior; SEIA also published a press release in April 2022 that supported Florida Governor DeSantis’ veto of the state’s anti-solar rooftop bill. The group has also supported renewable energy legislation: in Maryland, SEIA provided March 2024 testimony and February 2024 testimony in support of the Brighter Tomorrow Act, which successfully passed in April 2024.
However, SEIA also demonstrated some opposition to state-level solar policy: in a May 2022 joint memorandum with several other New York trade associations, SEIA directly advocated to New York policymakers to oppose the Build Public Renewables Act, stating that "the bill is unnecessary" and that there was no evidence the state's 2019 climate law requirements "cannot be met by private developers."
Positioning on Energy Transition: SEIA appears to demonstrate positive positions on the transition of the energy mix. CEO Hopper has consistently advocated in support of the climate provisions in the IRA, releasing press statements in August 2022 that urged Congress and President Biden to support the legislation. Hopper also praised Senator Manchin’s permitting reform proposal in a September 2022 press release, supporting the move toward accelerated clean energy deployment without commenting on its fossil fuel provisions. In a press release following President Biden's March 2022 State of the Union address, Hopper stated that the crisis in Ukraine emphasized "the urgency of our transition to a clean energy economy." In August 2023, SEIA submitted comments in support of the Environmental Protection Agency’s power plant rules, stating that it was a “rare opportunity to simultaneously advance the three top Administration priorities: combat the climate crisis, advance environmental justice, and create jobs.”