Inside the Greenhouse

President Joe Biden recently announced that he would use the Defense Production Act (DPA) to expand and accelerate the mining of critical minerals and materials needed to build a clean energy economy.

As the crisis in Ukraine rages on, we grieve the loss of life and destruction to our world that war inevitably brings. The people of Ukraine and all those affected by this conflict deserve our prayers, attention, and support.

Since his December announcement opposing the House-passed Build Back Better Act, negotiations with Sen. Joe Manchin (WV) have been stalled. However, there may still be a pathway forward to pass a version of Build Back Better—one that contains significant climate provisions.

December proved to be disappointing to climate change policy advocates as progress on the Build Back Better Act (BBB) stalled. The bill contains extensive provisions to address the climate crisis. With the holidays over, lawmakers are continuing to negotiate the size and scope of this potentially transformational legislation.

The House passed the Build Back Better Act on Nov. 19. In a victory for climate advocates, all of the climate provisions mentioned in last month’s newsletter made it into the House version of the bill.

In late October, the White House and congressional leaders agreed to a preliminary framework for the Build Back Better Act. The framework contains some critical climate policies that FCNL has advocated for.

The initial draft of the recovery package will be revised and slimmed down before a vote in the full House and Senate. As Congress decides what policies to prioritize, we need to keep the pressure to ensure the legislation includes bold climate provisions, including the Clean Electricity Performance Program.

The month of August is normally a quiet time on Capitol Hill, as members of Congress return to their home states for the Congressional Recess. This August, however, was busy with lawmakers working to advance infrastructure and climate-focused legislation.

The White House recently issued guidelines for its Justice40 initiative. It seeks to direct at least 40% of all benefits from federal energy and environmental spending to disadvantaged communities.

The Environmental Justice for All Act (S. 872/H.R. 2021) is a much-needed response to a long history of environmental wrongs.