Court blocks Trump administration’s freeze on affordable wind energy

(WASHINGTON – August 6, 2026) Today, the U.S. District Court in Oregon blocked the Department of Defense’s freeze on onshore wind energy projects, finding that the Department’s failure to conduct routine reviews of these projects violated clear statutory deadlines. The case was brought by renewable energy groups, with support from 18 states and the District of Columbia as well as eight environmental groups, including Environmental Defense Fund.

Over 100 wind projects in 25 states have been impacted by these delays – enough to power millions of American homes annually. These projects represent $47 billion in investment and 120,000 jobs.

Wind projects have long undergone routine review for national security considerations before construction, including during the first Trump administration. The Department of Defense did not offer any meaningful explanation for halting legally mandated national security reviews, nor did it offer a timeline for when reviews will resume.

“The court just stopped the Trump administration from misusing a long-standing review process to block the clean, affordable power that Americans need," said Phelps Turner, Senior Attorney, U.S. Clean Energy at Environmental Defense Fund. “For months, wind projects capable of supplying millions of homes and businesses with low-cost power have been needlessly obstructed, as electricity costs and demand soar.

“This challenge has been about making sure the national security review process remains thorough, transparent, and timely, so it can continue delivering what it has for years: a reliable framework that supports America's energy security.”

This ruling is the latest in a long string of court losses for the Trump administration on its efforts to block clean, affordable power, including rulings striking down five stop-work orders that halted the construction of major offshore wind projects, as well as the administration’s broad blockade on federal permitting for wind projects.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues to wastefully buy out offshore wind leases, paying yet another energy company $1.2 billion in taxpayer dollars to abandon its projects off the coasts of California, New York and Louisiana.