Solar Industry
In a 66 to 27 vote Monday, the U.S. Senate passed a comprehensive farm bill that, among many other provisions, includes funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).
REAP provides grants and loans to help rural businesses and agricultural producers invest in energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives, including solar and small wind projects. The Senate-passed bill, which totals a whopping $955 billion over 10 years, includes $68.2 million in mandatory REAP funding and $20 million in appropriated REAP funding annually for fiscal years 2014 through 2018.
The U.S. House of Representatives is now tasked with taking on its own version of a farm bill, which passed in a committee in May – without REAP funding included. If the House floor passes the bill, the differences between the House and Senate versions will need to be ironed out.
