A Senate bipartisan infrastructure deal negotiated with the White House contains $8 billion in tax credits for manufacturing facilities that reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, or produce or recycle energy-related products, as part of a broader proposal for $550 billion in new spending to upgrade the electric grid, rebuild roads and bridges, and expand rail and mass transit, among other projects.
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The House approved by a party-line vote a package of seven fiscal year 2022 spending bills including for EPA and the departments of Energy, Interior and Transportation, with funding boosts for multiple climate policy initiatives, some added from among the hundreds of amendments considered during floor debate.
New research on attributing the benefits of climate adaptation and other measures by local and state governments could help officials defend those programs in court, representing a potential legal tipping point in favor of more aggressive climate mitigation measures, according to the researchers.
Individual companies are beginning to file lawsuits challenging regulations aimed at addressing climate change in what experts are calling a new iteration of lawsuits that will act as a counterweight to ongoing litigation seeking to spur climate action.
The White House and a bipartisan group of senators have announced a hard-fought agreement on $550 billion of new spending for infrastructure, which retains most of the climate measures of a framework deal unveiled last month, including $73 billion for power grid upgrades, while reducing proposed funding for transit and electric-powered school buses.
EPA’s light-duty vehicle greenhouse gas proposal is expected to reserve the most stringent requirements for model-year 2026 (MY26) vehicles, in setting the stage for steeper emission cuts in later years, according to sources and press reports indicating formal release of the plan has slipped into August.
Republican members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) are raising concerns about the consumer costs from proposed draft rules for reforming the transmission siting process to encourage greater integration of renewable power such as wind and solar into the grid, arguing ratepayers should not be forced to pay for political policy goals such as addressing climate change.
Environmentalists and energy efficiency advocates are ramping up last-minute pressure on EPA to issue stringent federal vehicle greenhouse gas standards expected to be proposed possibly this week, including releasing a new analysis suggesting the Biden administration should float rules equivalent to at least a 55-miles-per-gallon (mpg) standard for model-year 2026 vehicles to counter Trump administration rollbacks.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has signed budget legislation exempting funding for zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) from rulemaking procedures, in order to “accelerate the state’s progress toward meeting its climate and transportation” goals.
As EPA weighs its options for regulating greenhouse gases from a range of sectors to address climate change, its advisors are urging officials to re-examine its legal authorities for limiting GHGs.
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The Department of Justice (DOJ) is again urging a federal district court judge in Oregon to dismiss youth plaintiffs’ novel climate suit as required by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, arguing that the plaintiffs’ recent effort to cite two Supreme Court standing decisions is “wholly irrelevant” to the climate suit.
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Climate Currents
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler is saying climate risk disclosure rules will be proposed by the end of the year, making a full-throated case for why the information is needed to ensure the stability and transparency of markets.
An annual report released by the American Clean Power Association (ACPA) shows 2020 was a record year for new renewable energy coming online, with wind, solar and battery storage power now exceeding 170 gigawatts.
Nevada’s Division of Environmental Protection (DEP) held a July 28 public meeting on developing regulations to promote the use of electric cars, launching a process that puts Nevada in line with more than a dozen other states on setting requirements for the sale and use of zero-emission vehicles.
Insider
Proponents of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) face an inflexion point for widespread use of the technology as a recent report provides new weight for phasing out combustion engines and biofuels, which is a risky political proposition, while federal and state policymakers are poised to enact measures to decarbonize the economy in part through financial and regulatory support for increased use of electric vehicles (EVs).
Voices
Former EPA deputy general counsel Ethan Shenkman says the Biden administration faces a major challenge in defending the benefits of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technologies against growing concerns by environmental justice advocates, arguing that transparency and “granular data” from an upcoming screening tool will be key to advancing such technologies that are central to achieving the president’s climate policy goals.
Weekly Analysis
The Biden administration has issued interim guidance to ensure low-income and minority neighborhoods benefit from federal investments to address climate change, but the long-awaited document falls short of calls from White House advisors who had urged officials to phase out support for fossil fuels and nuclear energy by 2030.
Week Ahead
House Democratic leaders are teeing up floor votes for multiple fiscal year 2022 spending bills that include significant climate-related funding at EPA, the Department of Energy (DOE) and various other agencies, while senators are also hoping to formally begin debate on a bipartisan infrastructure package.
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