SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Nearly 200 organizations called Wednesday on the Trump administration and Puerto Rico’s governor to restore $350 million in federal funding for rooftop solar and battery systems, warning that low-income families dependent on medical equipment face potentially fatal consequences from chronic power outages as Atlantic hurricane season approaches.
The letter, addressed to Puerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, was released as a May 9 deadline nears — the date at which a solar installation program that has left 12,000 low-income families in limbo will formally expire.
The federal government redirected the $350 million — originally designated to pair rooftop solar panels and battery storage with low-income households — toward Puerto Rico’s broader power grid, which was largely destroyed by Hurricane Maria in 2017 and has never fully recovered. González said her administration “had no choice” because the federal government decided it would not release the funds for the solar program.
“For them in particular, whether they get a (solar) system or not is something that is really life or death,” said Charlotte Gossett Navarro, Puerto Rico chief director for the Hispanic Federation, one of seven organizations that had been slated to help install the solar systems and educate families about their use. Some of those organizations are now formally objecting to the cancellation or negotiating with the U.S. Department of Energy.
Families with medical needs wait
Yvette Rodríguez, 61, lives on the small Puerto Rican island of Culebra with her husband, Luis Soler, a 67-year-old veteran and double amputee. She needs a sleep apnea machine; he relies on an electric adjustable bed and air conditioning because of heart problems in a region where heat warnings are common.
“There’s a big need for those solar panels,” Rodríguez said. Ongoing outages also force the couple to throw out food. “We’re affected economically in a big way because we have to spend what little money we have so that we can eat,” she said.
María Pérez, 80, and her 88-year-old husband face similar difficulties. Pérez has high blood pressure and heart problems that have led to several hospitalizations. She also has eyedrops for her cataracts that require refrigeration. “I put them on ice, but it’s not the same,” she said. “They have us suffering with that money that they took away from us. It’s not fair.”
Pérez receives $364 a month through Social Security. Her power bill is often the same amount.
Disabled residents warn of fatal risk
Gabriela Joglar Burrowes, executive director of Puerto Rico’s Statewide Independent Living Council, also signed the letter. Joglar Burrowes, who is disabled, said the program’s cancellation placed some of the island’s most vulnerable residents at risk.
“If you’re a person who depends on equipment like a ventilator, a dialysis machine or medicine that requires refrigeration, the lack of consistent energy represents a risk that could lead to even death,” she said. “It seems like sometimes we’re disposable, and we’re not.”
Who received systems, who didn’t
Crews had already installed solar systems in more than 6,000 households under the program. Some of the remaining 12,000 families have completed initial eligibility screenings; others have had home visits or begun roof repairs in preparation for installation that may now not come.
Most of those families live in rural communities, including mountainous towns such as Adjuntas, Jayuya and Orocovis. “It’s even more concerning,” Gossett Navarro said. “It’s hard to get out of the mountains when there’s a disaster.”
Gossett Navarro said Wednesday that the organizations had not received answers to pending questions about the funding as the May 9 deadline approached.
Solar growth has not reached the poorest
Rooftop solar installations have expanded significantly across Puerto Rico in recent years. An average of 3,850 systems were installed per month in 2025, for an overall total of nearly 192,000 by year’s end, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. More than 171,000 households and businesses have distributed battery storage systems.
But on an island of approximately 3.2 million people with a poverty rate above 40%, the privately financed solar market has not reached those who need it most. The canceled federal program was designed to close that gap.
The U.S. Department of Energy states on its website that some people will receive a solar system, but officials have not said who or when. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30.