U.S. Solar Continues to Grow Despite Headwinds from Federal Government

In terms of installations, 2017 was the second-best year on record for the U.S. solar industry. "Utilities, individuals and businesses installed 10.6 billion watts of solar photovoltaic capacity during Trump’s first year in office, according to the analysis by GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)," Chris Mooney writes for the Washington Post.

This is not to say Trump, who has championed coal (solar's direct competitor), has not slowed solar's expansion. "The Trump administration has proposed slashing funding for solar energy programs — including the Energy Department division that houses the SunShot initiative, which aims to drive down solar’s cost — and the recently imposed import tariffs are expected to lead to fewer installations by increasing the cost of panels," Mooney reports. Still, experts project solar to continue to grow in 2018.