Climate Change Solutions - September 5, 2023

Welcome back from August recess! Now that Congress is coming back into session, EESI’s briefings will be back in full swing, too—starting with Climate-Smart Research for the Farms of the Future on September 12 and The Latest on the Clean Energy Tax Incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act on September 28. 

We also return with a full slate of articles about some key environmental and energy topics. This week, we highlight equitable community solar and energy democracy in Minnesota and the potential benefits of more efficient distribution transformers. We also feature an article about how the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s two new programs, Powering Affordable Clean Energy and Empowering Rural America, will invest in rural energy reliability and resilience. Fall also marks the return of EESI’s podcast, The Climate Conversation. This episode features professor and scholar Rob Verchick, author of The Octopus in the Parking Garage, a book about climate change disruptions and how we can make climate resilience empowering and accessible.

Both chambers of Congress moved annual appropriations bills forward before breaking for August recess. In the House, two bills allocating funding for agencies were reported out of committee: H.R.4821, also known as the “Interior” appropriations, and H.R.4820, or “THUD,” for transportation, housing, and urban development agencies. The “MilCon/VA” bill (H.R.4366) allocating agency funding for veterans passed the full House. Meanwhile, the Senate Committee on Appropriations was able to pass all 12 of its annual appropriations bills with strong bipartisan support to the Senate floor before recess. 

Over the Congressional recess, members of the House introduced two bills advancing agricultural research. The Specialty Crop Research Act of 2023 (H.R.5199), introduced by Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), would reauthorize the Specialty Crop Research Initiative. The Advancing Research on Agricultural Climate Impacts Act of 2023 (H.R.5160), introduced by Reps. Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.), Michael Lawler (R-N.Y.), and Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) would require the Department of Agriculture to conduct research around the measurement, monitoring, and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in agricultural practices. To learn more about innovations in agricultural research and technology, RSVP to EESI’s latest Farm Bill in Focus Congressional briefing, Climate-Smart Research for the Farms of the Future. 

Also in agriculture, the REAP Modernization Act (S.2594/H.R.5051) was introduced in both the House and Senate with bipartisan support. The bill, introduced by Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) and David Valadao (R-Calif.) and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.), aims to strengthen the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), which provides funding to farmers for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.

The Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (NDAA) (S.2226) in late July. The Senate version of this annual “must-pass” legislation includes provisions promoting nuclear energy deployment, domestic mineral production, and public health. With the House NDAA (H.R.2670) having passed the week prior, the two bills are now expected to be reconciled in Conference Committee.

We track all environmental, energy, and climate legislation and hearings happening on Capitol Hill. See the full legislative tracker for the month of August here.

EESI is tracking recent announcements and updates about the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)

• The Department of Energy (DOE) announced $15.5 billion in IRA and IIJA grants and loans to support a just transition to electric vehicles, including $3.5 billion in IIJA funding to boost battery material production.

• The Department of Commerce and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced the availability of $45 million in funding for coastal habitat restoration and climate resilience for underserved communities and tribes.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced $20 million in funding for research studies into the restoration of degraded forests, grasslands, and watersheds.

• DOE announced the availability of $300 million in grants for the acceleration of electric transmission, dedicating the funding to state, local, and tribal siting and permitting.

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and DOE announced the availability of $350 million in grants for states to pursue methane emissions reduction in the oil and gas sector.

• USDA announced $266 million in grant and loan funding for rural business owners and agricultural producers to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency.