Think tank makes new argument for EPA's climate fund
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A major EPA climate grant program in the Inflation Reduction Act would create tens of thousands of jobs and nearly $24 billion in additional wages over the next six years, new analysis first viewed by Axios finds.
Why it matters: The study by Energy Innovation — a firm that backs strong CO2-cutting policies — lands as Capitol Hill Republicans look to end the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
- And EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is already seeking to terminate most of it using existing authorities, alleging various abuses, but the efforts are tied up in court.
- The fund is the largest non-tax investment in the 2022 law.
Driving the news: The study of $24 billion targeted for project finance notes that while the fund's main goal is embedded in its name, the program would have big economic spillovers.
- Energy Innovation — whose CEO, Sonia Aggarwal, is a former Biden White House climate aide — sees an average of 36,000 to 41,000 extra jobs annually compared to current policies.
- It also estimates $52 billion in consumer energy cost savings over 20 years and total investment in the U.S. economy of almost $65.5 billion.
Catch up quick: Much of the fund, dubbed a "green bank," stakes nonprofits that will, in turn, seek to build and sustain a wide network of community finance institutions.
- They planned to provide low-cost loans and other aid, and it was designed to leverage private capital.
- Zeldin has called the program rife with conflicts and abuses, though a federal judge has called out EPA for failing to provide specific evidence.
What we're watching: The fund's fate in the courts, and in Congress, where today the House Energy and Commerce Committee marks up budget legislation that would end it.
