August 16
While Congress is still out on summer recess during one of the hottest summers on record, we’re bringing you a special edition of MORE POWER on bills that have traction on the Hill that could have a big impact on climate policy.
This week in MORE POWER:
Defunding the EPA
Conservation: Very Mindful, Very Demure
Reducing Diesel Emissions
The Clean Up Bill
(Environmental) Justice for All
Defunding the EPA
In July, the House passed the annual budget bill that allocates funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Indian Health Service, Department of the Interior and more. The bill approved 20% less funding for the EPA than the agency had in 2024. The bill also reduces the National Park Service’s 2025 budget, as well as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s.
Environmental groups and progressives have condemned the bill. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said that it “unwinds our response to climate change.” By contrast, House Republicans have celebrated the bill as a model of fiscal responsibility. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) said, “While reining in unnecessary spending, this bill also directs funding where it is needed most.” Democrats control the Senate, so it will likely undergo significant changes before both chambers pass it and send it to the President’s desk.
Conservation: Very Mindful, Very Demure
The Senate passed the America's Conservation Enhancement Reauthorization Act in May. This bipartisan bill, if made law, will reauthorize programs to protect wildlife and habitats across the U.S. Additionally, the bill will support efforts like the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Program, which – supporters say – are essential for preserving ecosystems, restoring habitats and protecting wildlife. The bill also aims to address issues like invasive species and wildlife diseases. To become law, the bill will have to pass the House next.
Reducing Diesel Emissions
In May, the Senate passed the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act. This bipartisan bill extends a program through 2029 that allows the EPA to give out grants, rebates, or loans to those who either replace diesel engines or retrofit them – which means modifying or upgrading the engine with new technology or components that weren't originally part of its design – with technology to control how much pollution they produce. The program has already been reauthorized twice. To secure the program's third reauthorization, it will have to pass the House next.
The Clean Up Bill
Environmental justice is a movement to ensure everyone has equal access to healthy environments and that no one bears an unfair share of pollution and environmental hazards. Policy and business decisions—like where to build a factory, how to enforce pollution controls, or who gets access to clean water—can disproportionately affect communities of color, low-income areas and other marginalized groups.
There is a bill in the House called the Protection from Cumulative Emissions and Underenforcement of Environmental Law Act that would mandate that the EPA identify at least 100 communities that are primarily people of color and/or low-income, as well as have experienced more environmental law violations than average. The EPA would work directly with state and local officials to clean up the pollution in the communities Additionally, this bill would make the EPA consider and then publish a proposal to address the cumulative risk to public health that is brought about by a community facing several environmental risks at once. This bill currently does not have the traction to pass the House, but people power can get it done.
(Environmental) Justice for All
The A. Donald McEachin Environmental Justice For All Act is a massive environmental justice bill. Foremost, it would overturn the Alexander v. Sandoval Supreme Court decision and allow citizens of color to file a lawsuit under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 if they were discriminated against via disparate impact. Disparate impact occurs when a policy or practice, while not intentionally discriminatory, disproportionately affects a particular community.
Additionally, the bill would also provide financial resources to study and address differences in health outcomes that are closely linked with social, economic and environmental disadvantages; support equitable access to parks; provide grants for environmental justice initiatives and establish a fund to help communities transition from greenhouse gas-dependent economies. Versions of the expansive bill have been introduced since 2018, but it has not yet gotten the support it needs to become law. A version of the bill could come up for a vote in the Senate or the House.
What Congress Passed
Nothing – still on summer recess.
Nothing – still on summer recess.
Nothing.
What POTUS Signed Into Law
Nothing.
