Voters Support the Climate Provisions in the New Build Back Better Act
By Danielle Deiseroth, Senior Climate Data Analyst, Data for Progress
Ahead of President Biden’s departure for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), the White House released a new framework for the Build Back Better Act. While several of the Build Back Better Act’s original proposals — including the Clean Electricity Performance Program — have been jettisoned due to opposition from some Democratic lawmakers, the revised framework includes a landmark $555 billion investment to address climate change and transition to clean energy.
In an October 2021 national survey, Data for Progress and the Sierra Club asked likely voters whether they think lawmakers in Congress should take actions to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We also asked voters whether they support or oppose the key climate and clean energy policies under consideration for the revised Build Back Better Act.
We find that nearly three-quarters of voters (71 percent) think it is important for lawmakers in Congress to take actions now to make progress towards President Biden’s goal of cutting U.S. climate pollution in half by 2030. Nearly all Democrats (96 percent) and roughly two-thirds of Independents (65 percent) agree Congress should prioritize legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While Republicans are split, nearly half (49 percent) also agree that Congress should take action to meet this target — a sign that there is a bipartisan consensus around reducing harmful emissions.
We also find that there is overwhelming bipartisan support for the key climate and clean energy proposals that lawmakers in Congress are considering including in the revised Build Back Better Act. A majority of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans all support investments to improve energy efficiency in homes, buildings, and schools, investments to expand and strengthen the grid for renewable energy usage, rebates to increase the affordability of rooftop solar, and a polluter fee for corporations that export goods to the U.S. from countries that have a high degree of climate pollution. Other policies that enjoy support from a majority of Democrats and Independents, as well as a plurality of Republicans, include investments to boost U.S. manufacturing of clean energy technologies, tax incentives for clean energy companies to expand renewable energy across the country, and rebates to make electric vehicles more affordable.
With lawmakers close to clinching a deal on the Build Back Better Act, it is clear that voters across party lines support government investments to reduce emissions, tackle the climate crisis, and transition to a just and equitable clean energy future. Though the revised framework does not include many of the critical emissions-reduction policies that were originally proposed, this $555 billion investment along with the bipartisan infrastructure deal can make significant strides towards meeting President Biden’s emissions goal. As lawmakers move to pass the final version of the Build Back Better Act, they should feel confident making ambitious investments to tackle climate change knowing that voters widely support these measures.
Danielle Deiseroth (@danielledeis) is the Senior Climate Data Analyst at Data for Progress.