The Shapiro Administration announced an additional $25 million investment in the Solar for Schools program and nearly $3.5 million to help small businesses cut energy costs and reduce air pollution across Pennsylvania.
The Solar for Schools program, created by Governor Josh Shapiro in 2024 to help generate more clean, affordable, and reliable energy while creating more jobs and lowering costs for Pennsylvanians, has so far invested $27,188,960 in 84 schools across the Commonwealth. The Solar for Schools Grant program received $75 million in state appropriations to date.
“As we look at different options that can provide electricity to schools across Pennsylvania, solar is one of the cleanest, greenest options.” said Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary Jessica Shirley. “Recipients of the Solar for Schools program... are thinking to the future about how they can use the sun to power their buildings, save money, and decrease emissions to improve air quality for everyone.” The full press release on the recent Solar for Schools funding can be found here.
In addition, DEP Secretary Shirley announced nearly $3.5 million in grants to 15 small businesses across Pennsylvania through the Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions in Pennsylvania (RISE PA) Small-scale Award Track (SAT), helping businesses cut energy costs, improve energy efficiency, and reduce air pollution. The RISE PA grant program is a $396 million statewide industrial decarbonization grant program funded through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grants. The $40 million Small-scale Award Track is administered by the Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTAP) at Penn State and supports small businesses across Pennsylvania. The full press release on the recent RISE PA funding can be found here. Previously, in April 2026, DEP announced $273 million for RISE PA grants to support industrial decarbonization in the state (press releases can be found here and here).
Furthermore, DEP provides free ASHRAE Level II energy efficiency assessments to small and mid-sized manufacturers. The energy audits are funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), State Energy Program (SEP) Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding.