Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer Demands Greater Climate Change Provisions in Future Infrastructure Legislation

In the wake of the White House’s release of the Fourth National Climate Assessment, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) recently wrote a letter to President Trump in which he explained that any future infrastructure bill must include a major push towards clean energy.

“…it is crucial that we immediately enact legislation to combat climate change and create millions of jobs. Therefore, any infrastructure package considered in 2019 must include policies and funding to transition to a clean energy economy and mitigate the risks that the United States is already facing due to climate change.” Included in the letter are ten suggested policies that should be included in any future infrastructure legislation.

In the recently released Fourth National Climate Assessment, the White House notes that climate change has already had an impact on the United States, noting that the continental U.S. has already warmed by 1.8°. The report makes specific mention of the effects this warming has had on the energy sector, noting that the displacement of coal by natural gas and the increased adoption of renewable energy among many states has had an impact in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“A single infrastructure bill will not solve our climate problem in its entirety, but it is an important first step.”

In conjunction with his letter to the president, Schumer also wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post, reiterating that there would be “no deal” for any infrastructure legislation without taking climate change into account.

To view Schumer’s letter to the president, click here: https://www.democrats.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Schumer climate change infrastructure ltr.pdf

To view Schumer’s op-ed in the Washington Post, click here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/chuck-schumer-mr-president-lets-make-a-deal/2018/12/06/aeae0188-f99e-11e8-8c9a-860ce2a8148f_story.html?utm_term=.38809760937e