US clean energy job losses reach 37,000 in 2025

The U.S. clean energy industry lost 37,000 jobs in 2025, according to a new report from the business group E2. It's the first annual job loss for the sector since the pandemic, breaking four straight years of growth. E2 says the losses followed passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which rolled back federal tax incentives and other support for clean energy.

The losses wiped out nearly 40% of the new clean energy jobs added the year before. Almost every part of the industry shrank, including renewable power generation, which lost 11,500 jobs, a 2% drop. Energy storage and biofuels were the exceptions, posting small gains. Clean energy jobs made up about 43% of all job losses across the entire energy sector last year.

Despite the drop, clean energy still employs more people than any other part of the U.S. energy industry — over 3.5 million workers, compared with 958,000 in oil and gas, 125,000 in coal, and 70,000 in nuclear.

For homeowners, this is less about your own upgrade plans and more a sign of shifting federal policy toward clean energy generally. It doesn't change what rebates or incentives are available in your state today, but it does reflect the pullback in federal support that has been reshaping the broader clean energy market. If you're weighing a solar, storage, or efficiency project, it's worth checking current state and local programs directly, since federal support has been in flux.