Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) reportedly requested the Trump administration to unfreeze Biden-era climate funding in support of a car manufacturing plant in her southeastern district, which covers much of the Palmetto State’s lowcountry region.
In a Tuesday letter obtained by The Washington Post, Mace asked the Department of Energy (DOE) to release the funds for a Mercedes-Benz plant’s refashioning to produce electric vehicles, stating the move would bring roughly 800 jobs to her district.
The staunch Trump ally argued in the letter addressed to Energy Secretary Chris Wright, per The Post, that the grant would help “ensure America-made options remain available in the commercial vehicle sector.” The project sought nearly $300,000 from the federal government.
The report comes after Mace backed the House-passed spending and tax bill, which includes significant cuts to green energy tax credits. Many Republicans in the Senate, which is currently working through their own version of the legislation, voiced concern that renewable energy cuts may be too vast.
President Trump, in his broad efforts to curb government spending and root out fraud and abuse, nixed the South Carolina grant program when he halted the disbursement of former President Biden’s climate programs earlier this year.
“We strongly support President Trump’s initiative to restore fiscal responsibility within the executive branch, particularly in reducing waste, fraud, and redundancies,” the letter reads, according to The Post. “While we understand and support the necessity of such measures, we believe that federal investments should continue to prioritize projects with sustained economic growth.”
Mace’s office as well as the DOE did not respond to an immediate request for comment on the matter.
As The Post noted, it is difficult to assess how much climate funding Trump has withheld after he signed an executive order on Inauguration Day rescinding funds disbursed through Biden’s landmark Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The move wasn’t unexpected, however. On the campaign trail, he vowed to end the “madness” of national emphasis on developing EVs and accompanying infrastructure and has continued to rail against green funding touted by his predecessor.
Still, it drew widespread pushback from Democrats and imperiled billions of dollars, including projects in red states and districts, which sparked some concern from Republicans on Capitol Hill.
It has even provoked a number of lawsuits against the Trump administration. In March, farmers and environmental groups sued over the grant pause, including the halting of a $300 million program seeking to aid farmers install renewable energy or efficiency upgrades.
Earlier this week, a judge blocked the administration from withholding funds for EV charging infrastructure.
Still, Trump has maintained his distaste for climate-related funding. This month, the president blasted green tax credits that were still included in the GOP’s “big, beautiful bill.”
“I HATE ‘GREEN TAX CREDITS’ IN THE GREAT, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL. They are largely a giant SCAM,” he posted last weekend.
The Senate has taken a less aggressive approach to climate funding compared to their House counterparts. The upper chamber is expected to take up its own version on Saturday, after the text was unveiled overnight. The new bill text would still need House approval.
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