Today, The House of Representatives passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes huge investments in climate action, clean energy, environmental justice and more, sending the bill to President Biden to sign. The final bill was the result of months of congressional negotiations, which concluded following Latino Conservation Week. In response to the bill signing, Maite Arce, president and CEO of Hispanic Access Foundation, released the following statement.
“We applaud the funding provisions included for environmental justice community needs, pollution monitoring and cleanup, drought preparedness, coastal restoration, and clean ports, as well as tax credits and funding for clean electricity generation and storage in the Inflation Reduction Act. We are also pleased to see the oil and gas provisions increasing royalty rates and eliminating non-competitive leases, to ensure taxpayers get a fair return for drilling that takes place on our shared public lands; increasing fees for methane venting and flaring; and increasing monitoring of methane, an extremely potent greenhouse gas that causes air pollution in local latino communities.
“However, the Inflation Reduction Act cannot be the end of U.S. climate action, and the Biden administration must continue the momentum to push for solutions that provide for true climate justice. This bill requires more on- and off-shore drilling that threatens our public lands, waters, and ocean, while putting more communities of color at risk of pollution and accelerating climate change.
“Our communities need climate justice now. From its root causes to end results, the climate crisis has harmed Latinos and other communities of color disproportionately. From on- and offshore drilling that overwhelmingly pollutes our communities, to the burning of oil and gas on our highways and power plants located disproportionately close to neighborhoods of color, to the storms, drought, extreme heat, and out-of-control wildfires caused by increasing global temperatures – our communities are impacted at every step, and our health is at risk.
“It is urgent for Congress and the Biden administration to fix this system with bold action, starting–but not ending–with the signing of the Inflation Reduction Act, before our climate and our families suffer even more consequences.”
The Inflation Reduction Act is projected to result in 40 percent national emissions reductions by 2030 and will provide $369 billion for climate and clean energy provisions – a long-awaited start to a climate-safe future.
