2022 Appropriations Pave the Way for Historic Climate and Energy Investments
By Julia Jeanty and Celina Scott-Buechler
Last month, Congress approved a $1.5 trillion omnibus — guaranteeing government funding through September and paving the way for historic investments in our nation’s infrastructure, climate, and healthcare systems. President Biden soon after released his budget, which includes $44.9 billion in climate spending, a 60 percent increase from the FY 2021 budget. Data for Progress is excited to lead appropriations requests this year that uphold the climate and energy needs of Americans from Kentucky to California. Our work advocating for a livable, equitable future has demonstrated the importance of tackling multiple pieces of the climate crisis in tandem: from mitigating emissions that cause global climate systems to change to helping communities respond to the impacts they are already experiencing. As a result, our appropriations requests focus on three major pieces of the climate puzzle: grid resilience, clean energy loans and transition planning, and carbon dioxide removal. Altogether, our requests add up to more than $8 billion in smart climate spending. Moreover, Data for Progress polling finds that these proposals enjoy bipartisan support.
DFP is requesting a total of $7.83 billion for funding for a Department of Energy Grid Deployment Office. This request covers programs administered by this new office for deployment of the Building a Better Grid Initiative in order to:
Analyze high-priority national transmission needs to identify where new or upgraded transmission facilities could relieve expected future constraints and congestion, driven by deployment of clean energy consistent with federal, state, and local policy and consumer preferences;
Address higher electric demand as a result of building and transportation electrification; and
Address insufficient transfer capacity across regions by conducting a Transmission Needs Study.
Numerous global events, including the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 Texas power outages, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and skyrocketing oil and gas prices, have demonstrated the dire consequences of outdated energy infrastructure and the urgent need for U.S. energy independence, particularly in the midst of unmitigated climate change. Grid resiliency decreases the likelihood that threats like storms, fires, and cyberattacks interfere with Americans’ well-being. Boosting grid resilience is, therefore, a critical step to ensuring that the U.S. remains an energy powerhouse for decades to come.
There is a demonstrable political appetite for the federal government to invest in grid resiliency. Indeed, recent Data for Progress polling finds that a majority of voters (68 percent) support Congress funding $8 billion in transmission upgrades.
DFP is also requesting a total of $480 million for funding for the Loan Programs Office (LPO) to effectively develop and deploy clean energy innovation while prioritizing community engagement and technical assistance for clean energy planning. Specifically, we recommend the following funding structure:
Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program: $160 million to expand loan authority by $16 billion.
Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program (ATVM): $300 million to cover the credit subsidy cost of loans made under Section 136(d) of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.
Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program (TELGP): $20 million to cover credit subsidy cost or loan guarantees and direct loans.
As part of their climate agenda, the Biden Administration and the Department of Energy have made advancing clean energy innovation and scaling deployment a high priority. U.S. dependency on fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas has been steadily decreasing over time as innovations in energy supply, storage, and distribution have allowed clean energy sources to become cheaper, more efficient, and more competitive in global markets. The result — a steady decline in fossil fuel intensity — is leading the U.S. to reckon with the reality that the energy sector is undergoing a powerful paradigm shift. As the world transitions to a clean energy economy, frontline, fossil fuel-reliant, and other marginalized communities should not only be considered, but also benefit from this transition. Recent Data for Progress polling finds that a majority of voters (67 percent) support including funding in this budget for the Department of Energy to work with communities across the country that are impacted by our nation’s transition away from fossil fuels and toward clean energy.
In addition to investments in grid resiliency and energy transition planning, DFP is also advocating for funding for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal. We are requesting $10 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) program. Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies and practices have gained increased attention from Congress in recent years, including a landmark $3.5 billion for direct air capture (DAC) hubs in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). While Congress has made significant strides toward developing domestic carbon removal capacity, funding has largely focused on terrestrial CDR options like DAC to the exclusion of ocean-based CDR — funding for which comes almost exclusively from the private sector at present. The oceans’ ability to help regulate the climate system will be important for stabilizing global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius as prescribed by the Paris Climate Agreement, and can be further improved through intentional human actions. Further, ocean CDR approaches could offer advantages compared with terrestrial options such as distance from populated areas and non-competition with existing land use priorities. Recent Data for Progress polling indicates that a majority of likely voters (62 percent) support including funding in this budget for NOAA to study how we can use the ocean to store additional carbon dioxide emissions in order to slow climate change.
After a lengthy appropriations process, legislators must now capitalize on the abundance of appropriations requests that seek to combat the energy crisis while creating good-paying jobs and delivering a big win on climate.
Julia Jeanty (@julia_jeanty) is the Policy Manager at Data for Progress.
Celina Scott-Buechler (@cescobu) is a senior resident fellow at Data for Progress.
Survey Methodology