TO: Interested Parties
FR: Lashelle Johnson, LCV Senior Director of State Climate and Equity Policy and Matthew Davis, LCV Vice President of Federal Policy
RE: Trump props up costly, aging coal plants, leaving ratepayers holding the bill
Over the last eight months, the Trump administration has begun requiring that decades-old, expensive and inefficient coal plants continue running well beyond their planned closure/retirement dates. These facilities are often not operating, massive polluters, and are costing ratepayers millions. Plant owners, utilities, and grid operators have been planning for years to shut these costly units down. But as a gift to his fossil fuel donors, Trump’s Energy Secretary and former fossil fuel executive Chris Wright has already said they plan to try to force dirty, expensive coal plants around the country to remain open. This coordinated effort has already begun in Michigan, Washington, Colorado, Maryland, and Indiana but will no doubt continue to grow. At the same time, ratepayers and even some utilities are raising alarm bells. These actions extend this administration’s incomprehensible energy policy, raising energy costs for everyday people.
This administration’s campaign is already costing ratepayers at minimum: $1.6 million a day.
Across the country, voters continue to list rising costs as their top concern. We know increasing household energy costs are a major factor. We need to ensure the public sees this blatant corruption for what it is and understand what’s at stake for their pocket books.
Trump’s Energy Department has already announced they plan to prop up old and shuttered coal plants using more than half a billion dollars that Congress originally set aside to improve energy resiliency, environmental protection in rural areas, and carbon capture.
The first and largest project is Michigan’s Campbell Coal plant. Consumers Energy, a major Michigan based utility, publicly declared their plans to end coal use by 2025. Their last plant, J.H. Campbell was set to close last May, but for purely political reasons and against the utility’s own interest, the Trump administration stepped in and ordered the plant to remain open. This dilapidated, polluting plant is now raising rates across 11 states. Public health professionals estimate that Campbell Coal Plant causes 455 asthma attacks and 44 early deaths every year.
We know the administration has ordered:
Energy is rising at twice the rate of inflation, and the public feels it every day. While there are a variety of factors at play, it is unequivocal that the Trump administration’s disastrous energy policy and the Republican Budget have made rising costs substantially worse.
In November state elections, rising energy costs dominated headlines and became a centerpiece of major races across the country. Candidates that tackled the issue head on and embraced real solutions to rising costs won.
New Jersey Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill in her race for governor declared she would freeze energy prices on day one. Energy costs became a top issue in the Virginia governors race. Virginia Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger responded with her own plan for building out in-state energy, efficiency upgrades, and taking on unreasonable demands from data center operators.
In Georgia, two Public Service Commission races garnered statewide and even national headlines as a fight over rising costs, with candidates tackling the issue winning handily.
“The Trump Administration is using false pretenses to keep expensive and outdated coal-fired power plants running based on an ideological preference for coal, no matter the impact on Coloradans.
These plants are being closed because they are expensive and unreliable. Forcing them to stay open will mean higher energy bills and dirtier air for Coloradans.” – Katie Belgard VP of Programs, Conservation Colorado
The public has made it clear, rising costs are their top concern and energy prices are a major factor. Keeping coal plants open has already garnered massive state and local headlines. Local protestors have even rallied in Holland Michigan against Campbell coal. But the public at large still doesn’t always know why this is happening or who is to blame.
We know this is just the latest corrupt and baffling energy policy decision from the Trump Administration.
From his first day in office, Trump has relentlessly attacked clean affordable energy. He has blocked nearly finished clean energy projects like Revolution Wind, which would power 350,000 homes. Projects like this would drive rates down, instead he’s holding open plants that are raising rates every day.
We know that clean sources like wind and solar are now the fastest and cheapest way to get more energy onto the grid. As energy demand ramps up significantly, blocking wind projects, cutting clean energy tax incentives, and pulling dedicated funding have dramatically reduced the supply of new energy, making prices continue to rise.
This latest coal plant campaign is their most egregious example yet. Holding these dilapidated dying plants open costs us millions, all while we could be connecting and building more clean, affordable energy. The public needs to see the coordination. They must understand the corruption. And they have to know who is to blame.
©2026 League of Conservation Voters