Will History Repeat Itself? Like Reagan’s Repeal of Carter’s Achievements in Advancing Solar Energy, Will Trump Kill Biden’s?

As we celebrate the life and legacy of Jimmy Carter, his achievements in advancing environmental policies and specifically renewable energy must be considered among his most significant. As the Biden administration ends and the Trump presidency begins, we are reminded of a very similar time 44 years ago when the country transitioned from the Carter administration to that of Reagan. Spurred on by President Carter’s personal beliefs in the necessity to address our country’s reliance on foreign oil and the negative environmental and health impacts of fossil fuels, his time in office was highlighted by aggressive actions that moved our country to a more sustainable energy path. His policies and actions created a vibrant solar energy industry. But within a short four years, Reagan would eliminate, overturn, delay, or de-fund much of what Carter was able to achieve.

President Carter’s Advances Solar Energy

In the late 70’s to early 80’s the energy crisis caused by OPEC’s embargo and the Iranian conflict dominated politics. While average Americans were concerned about how this affected them financially, many others were more worried about the negative societal ramifications of fossil fuel consumption. Pollutants from coal, oil, and natural gas were increasing lung-related diseases, acid rain, and water quality. Our country’s heavy reliance on imported oil from unstable countries was a key factor in our trade imbalance. And the military-related costs associated with protecting the flow of oil to the U.S. from the Middle East was now over $54 billion per year. However, it was significant that Carter’s administration, even at that time, additionally recognized the potential ramifications of global warming and the need to reduce fossil fuel consumption.¹

Like today where 72% of Americans believe the federal government should be encouraging solar and wind power production over other forms of energy, in 1980 Americans supported solar energy and energy conservation over all other energy options. Emboldened by this public support and a strong belief that the U.S. needed to move toward a more sustainable energy path, President Carter implemented a series of pro-renewable strategies that significantly advanced the development and utilization of solar energy. His overriding objective was to derive 20% of the country’s energy from renewable sources of energy by 2000. Carter saw his solar strategy as “a challenge as important as exploring our first frontiers or building the greatest industrial society on Earth.” In a televised speech to the country, he proclaimed the battle to address the energy crisis as the “moral equivalent of war.”

President Carter spearheaded numerous legislative efforts that quickly resulted in substantial changes in energy policy, the most important being the Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977 which essentially created the U.S. Department of Energy.

In 1977 the Carter Administration founded our country’s primary national research institute, Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI). Years later, reflecting a broader focus on renewable energy sources, SERI’s name was changed to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). In July of 1979, Denis Hayes, the founder of Earth Day and a pro-renewable advocate, was selected by DOE Secretary James Schlesinger to head the Solar Energy Research Institute. SERI’s mission was to accelerate the development and stimulate the widespread use of solar energy technologies.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was established in October of 1977 as an independent agency to regulate interstate transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas. Carter additionally signed the Public Utility Regulatory Act (PURPA), which created a market for independent power producers including smaller renewable energy companies.

To help raise awareness of the important contributions solar energy could make in improving our environment and addressing the energy crisis, he traveled to the Solar Energy Research Institute on May 3, 1978. In declaring May 3rd to be Sun Day he stated “The question is no longer whether solar energy works. We know it works. The only question is how to cut costs so that solar power can be used more widely and so that it will set a cap on rising oil prices.” He continued, “Nobody can embargo sunlight. No cartel controls the sun. Its energy will not run out. It will not pollute the air. It will not poison our waters. It’s free from stench and smog. The sun’s power needs only to be collected, stored, and used.”And in a strong symbolic move, in 1979 President Carter had a 32-panel solar water heating system installed on the White House roof.

In 1978 Carter transformed the Tennessee Valley Authority by selecting David Freeman as Chair and then directing TVA to substantially increase their efforts to promote and finance solar energy initiatives. With an incredibly supportive Chair, TVA’s first of many significant initiatives was “The Memphis 1000” project which, at the time, was the largest utility-assisted solar effort in the U.S. Numerous subsequent efforts would follow including providing passive solar design assistance to homebuilders throughout the Valley and implementing daylighting into their own new headquarters building in Chattanooga.

With the passing of the Energy Tax Act of 1978, the Investment Tax Credit provided residential homeowners a 30% federal tax credit for implementing solar, wind or geothermal systems and a 15% credit for energy conservation measures.

In 1980, with the passage of the Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax Act of 1980, the residential incentives increased to 40% and businesses were then eligible for 10% credits. A report prepared at that time for the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee stated that of the $19.6 billion in profits made by the Fortune 500 companies between 1978 and 1980, 98% was made by 56 oil, gas, and service/supply companies. The Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax of 1980 was enacted to penalize oil companies that were routinely gouging customers by charging excessive prices for gasoline. From 1980 to 1990 the tax generated gross revenue of about $80 billion, with $200 million in the Oil Overcharge funds being distributed to state energy offices for conservation and solar energy initiatives.

Carter implemented a Solar Bank initiative which was structured to help subsidize single-family and commercial solar installations. $100 million was allocated for 1981, $200 million for 1982, and $225 million for 1983. The Solar Bank was funded annually out of the Energy Security Trust Fund from revenues generated by the windfall profits tax.

In 1980, four Regional Solar Energy Centers were created to provide information to the public as well as builders, contractors, and architects who played key roles in the acceleration of solar technologies.

To support his commitment to advance renewable energy, Carter’s Administration diverted hundreds of millions of dollars from conventional energy within USDOE’s budget to renewable energy options. In 1980, he earmarked $1.1 billion dollars in tax credit incentives for those wanting to install solar, wind, or geothermal systems on their homes. Carter’s last proposed solar DOE budget (FY 82), while later cut, was over $600 million. The result was that renewable energy equipment installations increased 700% from 1978 ($125.0 million) to 1982 ($867.2 million). From 1978 to 1981, the number of passive solar homes built grew 80-fold and by 1981 there were 3,500 manufacturers and installers of solar hot water systems. Most significantly, funding for research and development at our national labs and universities across the country was magnitudes greater. Carter’s plans were working. And, with the R&D dollars going specifically to solar, the country’s energy future could not have looked better.

“In developing and implementing a national solar strategy we are taking yet another critical step toward a future which will not be plagued by the kinds of energy problems we are now experiencing, and which will increase the prospects of avoiding worse difficulties. We have set a challenge for ourselves. I have set a challenge for my Presidency. It will require the best that American ingenuity can offer, and all the determination which our society can muster. Although government will lead, inspire, and encourage, our goal can be achieved only if each American citizen, each business, and each community takes our solar goal to heart. Whether our energy future will be bright—with the power of the sun—or whether it will be dim, as our fossil resources decline, is the choice that is now before us. We must take the path I have outlined today.” Jimmy Carter, June 20, 1979.

President Reagan’s Efforts to Kill Renewable Energy and Appease the Oil and Coal Industries

From the very start of Reagan’s administration, it was clear that his promises to protect the fossil fuel industries and defund or reverse environmental protections would be a centerpiece of his presidency. Indicative of Reagan’s desire to choose loyalty over experience in selecting his key administrative heads, he chose an ex-governor-dentist from South Carolina to lead the US Department of Energy. And demonstrating Reagan’s desire to protect business interests, he appointed Anne Gorsuch to head EPA, who immediately focused on downsizing the agency and eliminating environmental regulations on business. In Reagon’s first year in office there was a 79% decline in enforcement cases filed from regional offices to EPA headquarters and a 69% decline in the number of cases filed from the EPA to the Department of Justice. Gorsuch tried to gut the Clean Air Act, weaken the Clean Water Act, and defund the Superfund. The appointment of James Watt to lead the Department of Interior was considered by environmentalists as an equally bad choice. Greg Wetstone, director of advocacy at the Natural Resources Defense Council said at the time, “Never has America seen two more intensely controversial and blatantly anti-environmental political appointees than Watt and Gorsuch.” To reward the fossil companies that supported his election, Reagan rolled back the EPA vehicle fuel-economy standards (that subsequently led to car manufacturers continuing to crank out gas-guzzlers) and eliminated many coal mining standards to assist the coal industry.

In Reagan’s attempt to slow the advances in solar energy made under Carter’s administration, he put forward a budget to cut DOE’s solar line items by 60% to 70%. In Reagan’s proposed economic package entitled “America’s New Beginning: A Program for Economic Recovery” the Administration proposed rescinding already authorized FY81 solar funding by $99 million including the Solar Energy and Conservation Bank. He also cut Carter’s renewable budget plans for the next five years, reducing FY82 by $363 million to $200; FY83 by $428 to $236; cut FY84 by $372 to $251; FY85 down $330 million to $265; and FY86 down $275 to $278 million – a total 6 year cut of $1.729 billion. The package eliminated the Wind Energy Systems Act (which would have developed statistics on site wind characteristics throughout the county), OTEC demonstration funding, methane research and development funding, and the Energy Extension Service. Meanwhile, the Reagan Administration proposed increasing nuclear power funding by $388 million. Additionally, President Reagan, who notably claimed that “trees cause more pollution than automobiles do” proposed a 25% cut in the Environmental Protection Agency.

In 1981, the year after Reagan took office, national funding for energy conservation was $800 million, of which $452 million was for state programs. In 1987, the state funding level for conservation dropped to $213 million and requests by the Administration for 1988 were for only $6 million. For renewables, the 1981 funding level had been $575 million; in 1987 the support dropped to $124 million; and the Administration’s request for 1988 was $71 million.

To attempt to further cripple the solar advances, in June of 1981, Denis Hayes was fired as head of SERI. Then, in 1982, Reagan released his preliminary draft plan to dismantle the USDOE and called for the privatization of TVA. While both efforts ultimately were unsuccessful, it clearly indicated where his presidency was headed.

On June 21, 1984, despite approval in the Senate, the House dealt the solar industry a significant blow by deciding to put off until 1985 (the year the solar credits expired) any action on extension. The solar tax credits established in 1977 by Carter ended on December 31, 1985. The move created the uncertainty desired by Reagan and effectively placed the entire solar industry into a dilemma. Many solar water heating companies would soon be out of business. Most companies that remained were reporting decreases in business of 80% to 90%. The result of Reagan’s actions was devastating to the solar industry. By mid-1984 the value of the 30 stocks listed on the Solar Age Stock Index had plummeted.

And in 1986, Reagan symbolically had the solar system on the White House removed. To further appease the oil industry, in August of 1988 Reagan, through The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, repealed the Cruel Oil Windfall Tax.

As the Reagan Presidency ended in 1988, much of the renewable energy industry found itself decimated. Without many of the tax incentives and research funding, many solar technologies simply died. Research and development efforts at our national laboratories and universities had been cut so severely that many programs were discontinued. In 1989 the budget for solar R&D was one-tenth what it was a decade before. Many of the world’s leading researchers, who for years had focused on moving the country toward a new energy paradigm based on solar energy, were lost. And, worse yet, with no or little funding going to the research community for solar, the young, upcoming students to our universities and community colleges were no longer looking at solar as their future.

Will History Repeat Itself?

In evaluating the ultimate impacts that the Reagan presidency had on the advancement of renewable energy and the protection of our environment, it is now clear that his policies set back the advancement of renewables by at least one if not two decades. If Carter’s initiatives to aggressively fund research and development efforts had continued, the cost of renewable energy technologies would certainly have dropped far faster than what happened. The manufacturing cost of photovoltaic cells in 1977 was $77.00/watt. Today, that cost has dropped to less than $.20/watt and the cost of producing electricity with PV is less than $.03/kwh. Both photovoltaics and wind systems are now producing electricity at values less than that of coal or natural gas generation and magnitudes less than nuclear power. Think of where our country and the world would be today if we continued down President Carter’s path to achieve 20% of our country’s energy from renewable energy sources by 2000. In 2000 the US derived 8% of electricity from renewable energy. Today renewable energy’s contribution has risen to over 21%. Imagine where we would be battling the consequences of climate change if today’s cost of solar and wind had been achieved in 2000.

As we enter the transition period between the Biden and Trump presidencies, we see the policy changes that have been threatened by the incoming administration and wonder if history will repeat itself. The most significant difference today is that Trump’s energy plans, if enacted, will not only greatly impact the citizens of the United States but every country across the globe. Due to climate change denial by Trump and too many past world leaders and insufficient action by others, the world has now come to that long-feared tipping point. Already we are seeing unprecedented hurricanes, coral reefs dying, and drought-induced forest fires and food shortages in some regions while extreme rainfall is occurring in other areas.

President Biden was able to accomplish several monumental steps that, if allowed to continue by the incoming administration and Congress, will help mitigate the most severe ramifications of climate change. Not since the Carter administration have measures of this significance been enacted. The passage of the Infrastructure Law funded over $72 billion for clean energy, grid improvements and EV charging stations while the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 provided more than $370 billion over 10 years for wind, solar, batteries, and electric vehicles.

But, if the incoming administration and Congress continue to block these initiatives from having their full effect, and if additional actions are not taken by the US to reduce fossil fuel consumption, we will soon be facing significant sea level rise, mass extinction of species, the death of our oceans, resource wars, and millions of climate refugees. Until we greatly reduce the amount of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions being dumped into our atmosphere, the climate impacts that we are seeing today will continue to worsen.

Reagan’s actions in reversing many of the gains made by Carter slowed down the advancement of renewable energy sources by two decades. The question today is whether Trump will erase Biden’s gains and destroy our last shot at offsetting the worst-predicted outcomes from climate change.

About the Author
From 1977 through his retirement in 2021, Mike Nicklas served as president of Innovative Design, an architectural firm that during his presidency was responsible for over 4,800 energy-efficient, environmentally sound solar facilities that have cumulatively cut CO2 emissions by over 1.5 million tons. He was a founder of the North Carolina Solar Energy Association, twice Chair of the American Solar Energy Society and President of the International Solar Energy Society. To promote solar energy, Nicklas has met with the Heads-of-State of eight countries. He has had appointments and positions with the United Nations Development Programme Advisory Committee, AIA Committee on the Environment Steering Committee, the NC Governor’s Task Force on Solar Law, and others. He is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and the American Solar Energy Society.

Source
1. Böer, K. W. (2005). The Fifty-year History of the International Solar Energy Society and its National Sections. American Solar Energy Society.