Local lawmakers weighed in on the Trump Administration’s cuts to approximately $1 billion worth of federal funding for the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association (PNWH2), which supports clean energy efforts in Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Oregon.
The H2Hubs program was established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). It designates up to $7 billion in competitive grants to establish between six and 10 regional clean hydrogen hubs across the United States. These networks of hydrogen producers, consumers, and local connective infrastructure help accelerate the use of hydrogen as clean energy and work toward achieving the goal of a 100 percent clean electrical grid by 2035 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The cuts include the elimination of more than 10,000 jobs across the region (mainly in rural areas).
In Washington State these cuts include:
• Alare Renewables (Whatcom County): $102,797,603
• Atlas Agro (Benton County): $157,342,270
• Northwest Seaport Alliance (King/Pierce Counties): $11,800,670
• Lewis County Transit (Lewis County): $36,385,400
The White House Office of Management and Budget announced the cuts on Wednesday, October 1.
The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub, a collective of projects aimed at green hydrogen ecosystem spurring billions of dollars of infrastructure investment to provide alternatives to fossil fuels, has been years development and won a highly competitive national competition to receive the roughly $1 billion federal funding award.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) choose the Pacific Northwest Hub to demonstrate how clean hydrogen generated from hydropower could be utilized by a range of industries and transportation sectors.
In October 2023, the DOE designated PNWH2 as one of seven Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs) across the nation, focused on harnessing the Pacific Northwest’s abundant and clean hydropower supplies to produce hydrogen through hydrolysis.
In July 2024, DOE announced that PNWH2 received Phase 1 award status and would receive an initial amount of up to $27.5 million to fund initial planning, permitting, and analysis activities to ensure that the overall Hub concept is technologically and financially viable, with input from relevant local stakeholders. Besides the $1 billion in federal cost-sharing, the Hub expected to be matched by over $5 billion in local investments.
The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association is a collective of government, tribal, labor, energy, research, nonprofit, and private sector stakeholders aimed at creating a hydrogen center in the Pacific Northwest region. This public-private partnership includes leaders from the Washington State Department of Commerce, the Oregon Department of Energy, Amazon, Washington State University, and others.
What local lawmakers are saying:
Following the federal government’s decision on Wednesday, October 1, several Democratic law makers in Washington weighed in on the matter and how it would impact clean energy efforts in Washington.
“The Trump Administration’s politically motivated decision to strip funds from the pioneering Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub is unprecedented and corrupt. Our region was awarded this Hub following an intensive national competition because we showed we had the pioneering researchers, clean energy resources, and over $5 billion in committed local investment that it would take to show that clean hydrogen can work. I will be fighting to restore these funds,” said U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), senior member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
“President Trump’s campaign of political retribution continues, and hardworking Washingtonians are now part of the collateral damage. This politically motivated claw back of funds will result in significant job losses and increased utility bills in our state,” said Congresswoman Suzan DelBene. “The President of the United States is playing politics by targeting states that did not vote for him. I will fight this decision to save Washington jobs and avoid another hike on our energy bills.”
“The Trump administration is raising the cost of living by cancelling local clean energy projects. The Department of Energy is clawing back a billion dollars in funding for Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub, which has bipartisan support and is set to create thousands of good-paying jobs while decreasing energy prices across our region,” said Congressman Rick Larsen. “Cutting these funds delays the inevitable as clean energy trends toward hydrogen production for industrial use. The President is targeting his political opponents with these cuts, but the economic hurt of these decisions will be felt by everyone in our communities regardless of their politics. I will fight to reverse these cuts.”
Source: The Offices of Congressman Rick Larsen, Sen. Maria Cantwell, and Congresswoman Suzan DelBene.
