Inclusiv, the umbrella body for US community development credit unions, has won the latest round in its court battle over the Trump administration’s termination of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) money.
The apex had been granted a US$1.87bn federal award through the GGRF, but in March 2025 the the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) attempted to terminate the funding, alongside March 11, 2025, the EPA made an unlawful attempt to terminate Inclusiv’s award, along with awards to seven other organisations, under the GGRF.
Inclusiv plans to distribute the funds through its Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA), designed to build resiliency and drive energy cost savings across the country. It has selected 108 co-ops and credit unions, serving more than 4.9 million people, across 27 US states and Puerto Rico.
It says the CCIA was “designed to mobilise credit unions and cooperativas to offer affordable financing to reduce energy costs for American households and businesses, creating jobs and greater financial security”.
After the EPA sought to terminate the programme in March 2025, the GGRF funds were left frozen at the plaintiff groups’ Citibank accounts under an administrative. At the end of that month, Inclusiv and its fellow plaintiffs responded with affirmative litigation in the US District Court for the District of Columbia against the EPA and Citibank, “seeking declaratory and injunctive relief from EPA’s baseless attempt to terminate a programme created and funded by Congress”.
Related: Inclusiv grows its network of New York small business lenders
On 15 April, 2025, US District Judge Tanya Chutkan of the District of Columbia Federal Court issued a Preliminary Injunction order on behalf of the GGRF plaintiffs, rejecting the EPA’s attempts to terminate the programme.
The EPA then appealed – and yesterday (5 August), the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, in an En Banc panel decision, upheld the Judge Chutkan’s preliminary injunction order.
“This ruling affirms that the EPA’s March 11, 2025 ‘Notice of Termination’ violated the law, said Inclusiv.
The apex added: “Specifically, the En Banc panel sided with Inclusiv and the other GGRF plaintiffs in ruling 6-4 that the EPA’s attempts to terminate the National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF) and Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA) awards, and claw back funds already disbursed to the plaintiff groups’ bank accounts based solely on the administration’s policy disagreements, were invalid and have no effect.
“The panel was equally divided (5-5) on other points.”
The GGRF funds remain frozen at the plaintiff groups’ Citibank accounts under an administrative stay order also issued by the court. Inclusiv said it is “closely following the ongoing developments on the heels of these orders and will provide further updates as they become available”.
It adds: “Inclusiv’s strong commitment to clean energy lending remains regardless of the status of our litigation. The reality is that many Americans are navigating rapidly increasing utility bills, and aging energy equipment they cannot afford to replace. We will continue our work to make energy more affordable, safer, and cleaner for all.
