Historic federal investments from the Biden-Harris Administration, including the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), CHIPS Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), are empowering state and local leaders to create impactful changes in communities across the country, particularly when it comes to addressing climate change and expanding access to clean energy.

The NewDEAL Forum’s Climate Policy Group released a guide highlighting how state and local officials can capitalize on historic federal funding to both advance climate solutions and expand a robust green economy with high-quality jobs.

Following a presentation to our Climate Change Policy Group by the Loan Programs Office (LPO) at the U.S. Department of Energy, the NewDEAL Forum has published a report for state and local leaders about opportunities to attract investments for clean energy projects in their communities.

As the dangerous impacts of climate change grow, including the increasing intensity and quantity of natural disasters, rising temperatures, and more frequent droughts, scientists around the world agree that reducing emissions of greenhouse gases is critical to preventing further damage.

Rising pro-growth progressive state and local elected officials are focusing on innovative solutions to combat climate change and its effects in their communities, and they bring a broad and robust set of experiences and perspectives on these issues.

Climate change impacts every corner of America. Norfolk, VA, sits on 144 miles of flooding coastline. Rising heat threatens Wisconsin’s rich agricultural land as Milwaukee and Madison grapple with pollution-exacerbated injustices. It seems climate change causes problems as varied as the 50 states and thousands of cities and towns in our nation.