Chair Castor Applauds President Biden’s Commitment to Climate Action in State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON - Chair Kathy Castor of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis released the following statement on Tuesday after President Biden’s first State of the Union address: 

“President Biden's call to build a stronger and more resilient America through clean energy and more resilient infrastructure provides an extraordinary opportunity to create jobs and lower costs for families and businesses alike,” said Chair Castor. “By accelerating our clean energy future, we will usher in a new era of American prosperity, deliver for vulnerable communities, and give every American a fair shot. 

“Building a better America is within our reach, but action is urgent to protect communities from the increasingly costly and deadly consequences of the worsening climate crisis. We must pull together as Americans to confront these challenges - and it starts by investing in our communities at home. That's why we cannot rest until we've turned the popular clean energy investments passed by the House into law, so we can lower the costs of utility bills, free Americans from volatile gas prices, and provide cleaner air for every person.”

Background: 

Since Day One, President Biden has delivered on his promise to prioritize climate action and work with Congress to lower energy costs, advance environmental justice, and expand clean energy. 

• President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law makes historic investments to strengthen the electric grid, support electric vehicles, advance environmental justice, and prepare communities for costly weather disasters, including $7.5 billion to build a network of 500,000 charging stations for electric vehicles across America, the largest such federal investment in history; $7.5 billion for clean school buses and ferries; historic investments in rail ($66 billion), transit ($39 billion), and a program to reduce transportation pollution ($6.4 billion); and the largest investment in clean drinking water in American history, including $15 billion to replace lead service lines.
• The American Rescue Plan invested $100 million for environmental justice grants, including $50 million to increase air quality monitoring, and $50 million to identify and address disproportionate environmental or public health harms and risks in vulnerable populations.
• The FY22 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes important climate and resilience provisions that will help military installations reach net-zero on energy, water, and waste by 2035; strengthen military preparedness to the growing threats of wildfire and floods; and expand long-duration energy storage.
• Working with President Biden, congressional Democrats have delivered over 200 of the recommendations in our Climate Crisis Action Plan.
• In April 2021, President Biden announced an ambitious new target for the United States to achieve a 50-52% reduction from 2005 levels in economy-wide net greenhouse gas pollution in 2030.
• In December 2021, President Biden and the Environmental Protection Agency released its final greenhouse gas emission standards for light-duty vehicles, which strengthens safeguards to reduce pollution and helps Americans save $190 billion through energy and health savings.
• In January 2022, President Biden and the Department of Energy (DOE) announced the ‘Building a Better Grid’ Initiative to upgrade and expand the electric grid so that Americans can benefit from affordable and abundant clean energy.
• The House-passed Build Back Better Act makes generational investments to reduce pollution, boost resilience across America, ensure environmental justice for vulnerable communities, and meet America's climate goals. This historic legislation makes the largest-ever investment in clean energy; creates good-paying jobs to help address the climate crisis; saves families money through clean energy and energy efficiency; and strengthens America against climate risks, especially Tribes and frontline communities.
• The House-passed America COMPETES Act will strengthen supply chains for U.S. solar manufacturing, invest in critical equipment for our grid, and help train the next generation of energy workers.
• A full fact sheet on climate solutions passed in 2021 is available here.

  
###