A U.S. District Court judge, Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, has vacated a Trump administration policy that made it more difficult for wind and solar energy projects to access federal tax subsidies. This ruling is a significant legal setback for efforts to limit clean energy development, which President Trump has criticized as unreliable. The court found that the Treasury Department's Internal Revenue Service (IRS) failed to provide sufficient justification for removing a longstanding definition of what constitutes a project under construction. Under the previous rules, developers could qualify for a 30% tax credit if they began construction by July 4 or entered service by the end of 2027. The IRS's new rules, implemented last August, eliminated a crucial 5% cost provision, which had allowed developers to 'safe harbor' projects. The lawsuit, brought by environmental and consumer advocacy groups, argued that the changes would increase electricity costs and impede the development of clean energy. Following the ruling, the IRS will need to reconsider its regulations, as highlighted by San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, who called the decision a necessary check on the administration's energy policies.