Governors urge Biden administration to expedite solar tariff investigation

A group of 19 U.S. governors recently urged the Biden administration to expedite its review of the anti-circumvention solar tariff case.

The Commerce Department is investigating whether imports of solar panels from Southeast Asia circumvent rules and avoid tariffs. Sources say the four nations under investigation are responsible for 80 percent of the U.S. supply of certain solar panels that are important to the utility-scale sector.

“The current market disruption jeopardizes much of the progress achieved by the domestic solar industry, and we fear this will only continue for the duration of the investigation. Almost immediately, solar prices have jumped because of dramatic drops in solar product imports, threatening the livelihoods of more than 230,000 American workers who rely on solar jobs and raising energy costs on families,” the governors wrote to President Joe Biden.

The letter was signed by governors from Arkansas, Hawaii, Colorado, Indiana, Massachusetts, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Washington, Pennsylvania, and American Samoa.

“As Governors, we strongly urge you and your administration to expedite a preliminary determination as well as an economic analysis of the impact retroactive actions would have on businesses, workers, and families. Until a determination is made, uncertainty will stifle investments and innovation. Such actions will allow Americans to continue building a secure and independent energy future while your administration continues its investigation,” they concluded.

Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), agreed with the governors.

“Governors understand the importance of reliable, low-cost clean energy, and this bipartisan letter highlights how disruptive the Commerce Department’s tariff investigation is for state economies, electric grids, and local workforces. States have been leading the way on clean energy for years, and while federal efforts to curb climate change have stalled, the Biden administration is now standing in the way of state-level clean energy goals,” Hopper said. “As a direct result of this baseless tariff case, the United States is now on track to install more solar under President Trump than President Biden. Each day that this case drags on puts President Biden’s vision for a strong clean energy economy out of reach.”