Hi John,
Earlier this month, President Biden announced his modest $2 trillion plan to update the nation’s crumbling infrastructure over the span of ten years. This is a good step, but it does not go far enough.
We need an initial investment of $16 trillion dollars to fully transition our economy off of dangerous fossil fuels and build the resilience we need to combat the climate crisis.
While Biden’s announcement is welcome news for many, there’s an even bigger problem:
Fossil fuel companies, and the politicians who support them, are already lobbying to stop Biden from increasing corporate taxes to pay for the infrastructure upgrades and fighting to keep fossil fuel-government subsidies. It is outrageous, John, and we need to stop this.
Here's the good news: we have a way to fight back. There are climate bills making their way through Congress that would transition us off of toxic fossil fuels to renewable energy and put an end to fossil fuel subsidies.
But we need climate activists like you to voice your support and show President Biden that while we acknowledge his efforts to reduce carbon pollution, we need him to go even further by adding these bills to his infrastructure plan:
The BUILD GREEN Infrastructure and Jobs Act, introduced by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Andrew Levin, addresses the climate crisis and our crumbling infrastructure by providing $500 billion in grant funding for roads, bridges, and rail, while electrifying our public transportation systems (including school buses!) over the next ten years.
The End Polluter Welfare Act, introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ilhan Omar, closes tax loopholes and eliminates federal subsidies for the oil, gas, and coal industries.
The Green New Deal for Public Housing Act, introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, invests up to $180 billion over ten years in sustainable retrofits for public housing units, reduces public housing water bills by up to 30% per year and electricity bills by 70% per year, and creates close to 250,000 union jobs.
It’s no secret that our infrastructure is in urgent need of repair.
The average age of the United States’ water and sewer pipes is 45 years.1 Nearly half of the nation’s bridges are over 40 years-old and more than 56,000 of them have structural issues.2 More than 20% of our roads are in poor condition.3
Biden’s infrastructure plan is our chance to rebuild the nation with green infrastructure, create fair-wage union jobs, and end the practice of government handouts to Big Oil and Gas who use public money to pollute our communities and accelerate the climate crisis.
Big Oil and Gas will never stop fighting for corporate tax breaks and government subsidies, despite receiving over at least $8 billion from last year’s pandemic stimulus bill.4 It’s up to us to say enough is enough: we demand renewable, green infrastructure, and for corporations to pay their fair share of taxes.
But to make that happen, we need thousands of people to urge Congress to demand President Biden add these key climate bills to his infrastructure plan.
Thank you for taking action.
Natalie Mebane
Associate Director of Policy
350.org
1 - New York Times
2 - Business Insider
3 - USA Today
4 - The Guardian
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