Case: Iowa Farmers Union v. United States Department of Agriculture

1:26-cv-03384 | U.S. District Court for the District of District of Columbia

Filed Date: Sept. 28, 2026

Case Ongoing

Clearinghouse coding in progress

Case Summary

(This summary is temporary while we research the case.)

Filed September 28, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for D.C., this lawsuit challenged USDA's "Anti-Solar Policy," which restricted solar project eligibility under the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). Plaintiffs, a coalition of farm trusts, solar trade associations, and grant consultants, alleged the policy violated the Administrative Procedure Act by exceeding USDA's authority and retroactively applying new eligibility criteria to pending applications, causing millions in losses.

This case is ongoing.

People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/74862456/parties/iowa-farmers-union-v-united-states-department-of-agriculture/

Judge(s)

Nichols, Carl John (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Apfel, Carrie F. (District of Columbia)

Judge(s)

Nichols, Carl John (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Apfel, Carrie F. (District of Columbia)

Attorney Contact Information via CourtListener

Documents in the Clearinghouse

Documents in this case

1 1:26-cv-03384	Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief	Sept. 28, 2026	Sept. 28, 2026 Complaint

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Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/74862456/iowa-farmers-union-v-united-states-department-of-agriculture/

Last updated Nov. 8, 2026, 3:06 a.m.

Docket for: IOWA FARMERS UNION v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

ECF Number	Date	Description	Link
1	Sept. 28, 2026	COMPLAINT against All Defendants ( Filing fee $ 405 receipt number ADCDC-12705769) filed by NEW YORK SOLAR ENERGY INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION, CLEAN POWER CONSULTANTS, JAMES BOOK, RENEW WISCONSIN, LTL LED, LLC, DAVID A. LONEY CONSULTING, DAVID BOOK, SOLAR UNITED NEIGHBORS, SVF, LLC, IOWA FARMERS UNION, IOWA SOLAR ENERGY TRADE ASSOCIATION. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A - Unnumbered Letter, # 2 Exhibit B - Press Release, # 3 Exhibit C - FOIA Emails, # 4 Exhibit D - Strong Stewardship FAQs, # 5 Exhibit E - Stakeholder Announcement, # 6 Exhibit F - Stakeholder Announcement FAQs, # 7 Exhibit G - NAD Appeal, # 8 Civil Cover Sheet, # 9 Summons - U.S. Department of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, Victoria Collin, U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Attorney for DC)(Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026) 1 Exhibit A - Unnumbered Letter View on RECAP 2 Exhibit B - Press Release View on RECAP 3 Exhibit C - FOIA Emails View on RECAP 4 Exhibit D - Strong Stewardship FAQs View on RECAP 5 Exhibit E - Stakeholder Announcement View on RECAP 6 Exhibit F - Stakeholder Announcement FAQs View on RECAP 7 Exhibit G - NAD Appeal View on RECAP 8 Civil Cover Sheet View on RECAP 9 Summons - U.S. Department of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, Rural Business-Coopera View on RECAP	Clearinghouse
2	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by IOWA FARMERS UNION (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
3	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by SVF, LLC (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
4	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by IOWA SOLAR ENERGY TRADE ASSOCIATION (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
5	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by NEW YORK SOLAR ENERGY INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
6	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by RENEW WISCONSIN (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
7	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by SOLAR UNITED NEIGHBORS (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
8	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by LTL LED, LLC (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
9	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by CLEAN POWER CONSULTANTS (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
10	Sept. 28, 2026	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by DAVID A. LONEY CONSULTING (Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/28/2026)	RECAP
11	Sept. 29, 2026	SUMMONS (6) Issued Electronically as to All Defendants, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachments: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zmtm) (Entered: 09/29/2026)	RECAP
12	Sept. 29, 2026	MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice :Attorney Name- Michael Youhana, Filing fee $ 100, receipt number ADCDC-12708797. Fee Status: Fee Paid. by DAVID BOOK, JAMES BOOK, CLEAN POWER CONSULTANTS, DAVID A. LONEY CONSULTING, LTL LED, LLC, NEW YORK SOLAR ENERGY INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION, SVF, LLC. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration, # 2 Certificate of Good Standing, # 3 Text of Proposed Order)(Apfel, Carrie) (Entered: 09/29/2026)	RECAP
	Sept. 29, 2026	Case Assigned/Reassigned
	Sept. 29, 2026	Case Assigned to Judge Carl J. Nichols. (zmtm)
13	Oct. 9, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to US Attorney	RECAP
14	Oct. 16, 2026	Standing Order	RECAP
	Oct. 16, 2026	Order on Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice
15	Oct. 27, 2026	Notice of Appearance	RECAP
16	Nov. 4, 2026	Notice of Appearance	RECAP
17	Nov. 4, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to U.S. Attorney General	RECAP
18	Nov. 4, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant	RECAP
19	Nov. 4, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant	RECAP
20	Nov. 4, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant	RECAP
21	Nov. 4, 2026	Summons Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant	RECAP

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Case Details

State / Territory:

District of Columbia

Special Collection(s):

Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government

Grant/Contract rescissions, Defunding or Other Threats against Private Entities

Key Dates

Filing Date: Sept. 28, 2026

Case Ongoing: Yes

Case Details

Other Dockets:

District of District of Columbia 1:26-cv-03384

Available Documents:

Complaint (any)

Trial Court Docket

Recommended Citation

Case Summary of Iowa Farmers Union v. United States Department of Agriculture, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48564/.