USDA Policy Change on Solar Farms on Prime Farmland

planned

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a policy change to no longer fund solar panel projects on productive farmland or allow solar panels manufactured by foreign adversaries in USDA projects. This action aims to protect prime farmland from being converted into solar farms, which has made farmland less accessible and more expensive for farmers. The policy includes programmatic changes to USDA loan and grant programs to exclude large ground mount solar photovoltaic systems and ensure energy units are right-sized for agricultural facilities.