Inside the Greenhouse

It has been a long time in the making, but the Senate finally passed a historic bill that meaningfully addresses climate change.

Late last month, the Supreme Court ruled on a 6-3 basis to constrain the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to regulate emissions from the power sector. Many climate advocates consider the decision to be a blow to the administration’s efforts to address the growing climate crisis.

The next two months present the best opportunity for the 117th Congress to take meaningful and historic action on climate policy. The goal is to reach an agreement before lawmakers depart for their August congressional recess. We are lobbying to ensure that tax incentives for renewable energy and environmental justice policies are included in any final reconciliation bill.

In the last two weeks, Sens. Joe Manchin (WV) and Lisa Murkowski (AK) hosted conversations to discuss the potential of a bipartisan energy bill. Seven Democrats and four Republican senators attended the latest meeting to discuss what types of provisions could garner bipartisan support.

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.