For Immediate Release
August 7, 2022
Contact: Emily Samsel, esamsel@lcv.org, 828-713-9647
LCV Statement on Senate Passage of the Inflation Reduction Act
Washington, D.C. – Today, in response to Senate passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) released the following statement from Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld:
“Today is a huge and historic day! This landmark legislation is the biggest thing our nation has ever done on climate change, and our work to truly secure climate justice is far from over. Getting to this point is a testament to climate champions in Congress, and the diverse coalition, including labor, environmental justice advocates, and young people, relentlessly fighting for climate action, environmental justice, and good paying jobs. We look forward to swift House passage followed by the President’s bill signing so that the U.S. can speed up our transition to a healthier, more equitable, clean energy future as soon as possible. All 50 Senate Republicans who opposed this bill just sided with polluters and corporate special interests and against the health and well being of their constituents, and we won’t let them forget it.
“Passing this bill will mean massive and hard-won progress toward a clean energy future for our country. It will set in motion the economy-wide transformation necessary to power our homes, cars and trucks, and buildings with cheap renewable energy while making the U.S. a leader in clean energy manufacturing and investing in communities too often left behind. This legislation also includes damaging provisions designed to benefit the still-too-powerful fossil fuel industry that could have particularly harmful impacts on Indigenous communities, people of color, and other front-line communities. Just as we are ready to build the clean energy future this historic bill supports, we are equally ready to keep fighting against more drilling, leasing, pipelines, and other dangerous measures that perpetuate environmental racism and the climate crisis.”
* * *
The last year and a half saw the biggest climate campaign in LCV’s history. From over 400 events with members of Congress, cabinet officials, and other federal and local leaders, to field teams knocking over 575,000 doors in key states, to engagement with more than 27,000 small businesses, to town hall advocacy, to butter and ice sculpture art activations, to hundreds of paid TV and digital ads, LCV and our state affiliates and partners left nothing on the table in the fight for a climate bill. Now, it’s time to finish the job.
# # #