Congress Should Pass the $555 Billion Clean Energy Investments Included in the Reconciliation Package
Majority Leader Schumer,
On March 3rd, 2022, Senator Manchin publicly stated what policies in a reconciliation package he could vote for, namely tax reform, prescription drug affordability, deficit reduction, and clean energy investments. We are writing now to ask you to move forward in turning this framework into legislative text and enacting it into law – without delay.
That package should include the entire $555 billion in clean energy investments that passed the House as part of HR 5376. These provisions would reduce U.S. reliance on oil, more than offsetting the oil we imported from Russia in under 5 years, as the graph below shows:
(https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Congressional-Proposals-and-U.S.-Energy-Security-EPS-Modeling.pdf)
These clean energy investments will save the average household $500 on their utility bills, replace over 5 million lead service lines, make the grid more reliable, create more than 150,000 family-sustaining jobs in clean manufacturing, create urban green space, improve access to public transportation, and much more. Together these investments are more than the sum of their parts and would cut US greenhouse gas emissions nearly 50% by 2030.
(https://repeatproject.org/docs/REPEAT_Summary_Report_022822.pdf)
As shown above, without the $555 billion for clean energy investments there is an emission gap of more than 1 billion metric tons of CO2 equivalent between the current trajectory and President Biden’s goal. This is a gap that is simply too large to be closed by executive action and state legislation. Passing these federal investments is necessary to hitting the 50-52% by 2030 target.
We appreciate all your office has done to try to pass this critical climate legislation. We are counting on your continued leadership to get this victory over the finish line. With Manchin’s parameters now publicly established, we urge you not to waste any time hammering out and passing the reconciliation package.
Sincerely,
Mike Tidwell
Executive Director, Chesapeake Climate Action Network
Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, D.C.
Gregg Small
Executive Director, Climate Solutions
Oregon, Washington
Stephen Smith
Executive Director, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy
Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi
Daniel Sosland
President, Acadia Center
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York
Jon Goldin-Dubois
President, Western Resource Advocates
Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming
Michael Noble
Executive Director, Fresh Energy
Minnesota
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Contact:
Mike Tidwell, CCAN: mtidwell@chesapeakeclimate.org, 240-460-5838
KC Chartrand, CCAN: kc@chesapeakeclimate.org, 240-620-7144
