The Biden administration revealed on Monday the selection of 25 projects from 30 state, local, and tribal governments that have applied for a share of $4.3 billion in grants established under the president's climate initiative. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reviewed nearly 300 applications totaling over $30 billion.
The grants, set to be distributed by early autumn, are intended to support the deployment of clean energy technology across diverse sectors including housing and agriculture.
According to the administration, the selected projects are expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 150 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) by 2030, contributing approximately 2 percentage points towards the U.S. goal of reducing CO2e emissions by 50%-52% by that year.
As the 2024 election approaches, the EPA and other federal agencies are working to allocate these grants, which are part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Former President Donald Trump and some Republican lawmakers have proposed repealing several IRA grant and loan programs.
John Podesta, senior advisor to President Joe Biden for International Climate Policy, stated, “These grants will help state and local governments improve the air quality and health of their communities, while accelerating America's progress toward our climate goals.”
