Washington, D.C. (November 19, 2021) – The House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better (BBB) Act today, which will invest $1.75 trillion in meaningfully improving the lives and livelihoods of people all across the United States. The BBB Act includes $162.9 billion to advance environmental justice priorities supported by the Equitable and Just National Climate Platform (EJNCP) co-authors. This major package of investments supports environmental and climate justice block grants and other programs to clean up pollution and create toxic-free communities, healthy ports, and climate-resilient affordable housing and community infrastructure. The Build Back Better Act also invests in pollution-free energy and transit, trucks and buses, a Civilian Climate Corps to create clean energy and resilience jobs in communities, research and development infrastructure at Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs), funding for community engagement to equitably implement the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), and much more.
In response, the co-authors of Equitable and Just National Climate Platform released the following statement applauding the Act’s passage out of the House:
“The Build Back Better Act delivers historic, life-saving and long-overdue investments to communities that are both on the front lines of our nation’s most toxic pollution and disproportionately exposed to climate change threats. By advancing this bill, the House is moving to tackle the climate crisis, environmental injustice, and economic inequality with much-needed investments in pollution-free and sustainable community development, healthy ports, workers and fair-wage jobs, climate change-ready affordable housing, and more — things that are so critical to so many of our communities. The Build Back Better Act also supports the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal to deliver 40 percent of the infrastructure and climate investment benefits to disadvantaged communities.”
“Right now, vulnerable communities across the country are feeling the public health and economic impacts of climate change and environmental injustice. Building back better means building back with justice and clean air, clean water and climate justice for all. Now, the Senate must act immediately to pass the Build Back Better Act to secure a healthy, equitable and prosperous future for all.”
A full list of the EJNCP’s environmental justice investment priorities in the BBB Act can be found here.
For more information, or to speak with an expert, please contact Ari Drennen at adrennen@americanprogress.org or Jake Thompson at jthompson@nrdc.org.
