1. WHAT BUILD BACK BETTER MEANS FOR FAMILIES IN EVERY STATE

Earlier this week, Third Way released a new report demonstrating how the Build Back Better Act (BBBA), if passed, would benefit six typical families in all 50 states. The report includes an interactive map to visualize how the Child Tax Credit, child care cost caps, and expansions to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act in BBBA would reduce costs for a family of four by $7,400 and by as much as $15,000 for a single mother with two children. Not only was it featured on NPR, but President Biden himself cited our report in his remarks on Wednesday explaining how American families would benefit from Build Back Better.
 

2. SUSTAINABLE AVAITION FUEL TAKES FLIGHT

On December 1, a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Washington, DC (well, National Airport in Arlington, VA) became the first commercial flight to use 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). This is a HUGE deal, and it’s a significant step toward decarbonizing aviation, a challenging sector for emissions reductions.

We’ve been vocal advocates for SAF, not only because it’s the quickest and most efficient way to reduce aviation emissions, but because it will stimulate our biofuel industry and improve air quality near airport communities. This includes helping to lead in educating policymakers about the need to scale up research, development, and deployment for SAF to overcome some of the remaining hurdles, including developing and producing SAF feedstocks in large enough quantities to meet demand. 

This work has helped lead to the Department of Energy, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Agriculture launch of the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Grand Challenge, a collaborative effort to develop sufficient, affordable sustainable fuel to meet 100% of aviation fuel demand by 2050. Aviation is critical for the economy, commerce, and human connection. Rather than reduce flying, we believe that the right path for climate and air travel is reducing emissions through innovative new technologies like SAF.

3. COMBATING RISING OIL PRICES

Rising energy prices have left Americans strapped for cash at the pump and contributed to serious concerns about inflation for the first time in a generation or more. Americans are justifiably worried about rising prices— energy costs in particular impact families across the country every single day.

Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, Senior Resident Fellow at Third Way and former Chief Economist at Ford Motor Company and for the Department of Commerce under President Obama, and Amy Myers Jaffe, Managing Director of the Climate Policy Lab at The Fletcher School at Tufts University, co-authored a blog post explaining why energy markets are in flux. They also detail a series of recommendations that policymakers should apply to mitigate the impact of rising energy prices and ease the cost burden on American households. These recommendations include expanding funding for the Low-Income Household Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and making use of the DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program.

Truthfully, rising gas prices aren’t an issue that can be dispelled for most Americans through complex, technical explanations or market forecasts. Voters don’t want to think about market mechanics, and they have no reason to care about long-term energy investments.

As the US government works to drive down inflation, we should also use this as an opportunity to explain the benefits of clean energy investments: namely, how investing in clean energy infrastructure will reduce the impact of rising oil, coal, or natural gas prices on American consumers. By producing enough clean energy to meet all of our domestic energy needs, we can reduce our reliance on fossil fuels that are susceptible to commodity price swings, drive down costs, and reduce the air, water, and climate pollution that harm our kids.

4. DEVELOPMENTS ON NUCLEAR: NRC OVERSIGHT HEARING AND CONSENT-BASED SITING

5. WHAT WE’RE READING

• This week, the New York Times covered the major shift in thinking around nuclear power that’s happening around Europe. In fact, more than half a dozen European countries recently pledged to build new, advanced nuclear reactors in an effort to reach their emissions reduction targets. 
• Your electric car could become a virtual power plant, according to Joann Muller at Axios. As more and more Americans switch to EVs, it could create a power-sharing opportunity if EV owners let utilities control when their car is charged based on overall electricity demand. 
• In The Guardian, Aliya Uteuova reports on the transformation of New York’s Cross Bronx Expressway, one of New York City’s busiest and heaviest polluting highways, into a green space to reconnect communities, thanks to funding from the recently passed bipartisan infrastructure bill. It’s a clear example of federal dollars at work to undo the damage of urban freeways.