US clean energy jobs fell for the first time since the pandemic

The US lost nearly 37,000 clean energy jobs in 2025, the first yearly drop since the pandemic. That follows four straight years of growth and comes after the Trump administration and Congress rolled back federal support for clean energy and electric vehicles, prompting companies to cancel or shrink projects. Total clean energy employment fell to 3.52 million, wiping out close to 40% of the gains made in 2024. The findings come from E2, a nonpartisan group that tracked the losses using US Department of Energy data.

The losses hit 35 states. California lost the most jobs, nearly 21,000, while Florida was one of the few states to gain, adding about 3,800. Energy efficiency work, renewable energy, and EV-related jobs all declined, though battery storage, grid work, and biofuels saw small gains. E2 also tracked 142 clean energy manufacturing, generation, and storage projects that were canceled or scaled back in 2025, though it's not clear exactly how many jobs each policy change cost.

For homeowners, this doesn't change any specific rebate or incentive on its own, but it signals a tougher climate for clean energy investment nationally. If you're weighing a heat pump, solar panels, or other efficiency upgrades, it's worth checking whether state or federal incentive programs you were counting on are still active, since this pullback shows the policy environment is shifting. E2 plans to release a fuller report with state and county detail in October.