This page was last updated on June 15, 2021.
States, local governments, and tribal nations have meaningful action to address the climate crisis, promote environmental justice and ensure that more jobs building a 100% clean energy economy are high quality union positions. In the past few years, there have been major breakthroughs at the state level – including guidelines that pave the way for Congress and administration to follow through both executive and legislative action.
25 states and territories – representing the majority of the U.S. population –are committed on the greenhouse gas reduction targets of the Paris Climate Agreement by the bipartisan US Climate Alliance. As of 2015, 17 states plus Puerto Rico and Washington, DC, have taken action on 100 percent clean energy agendas, according to energy a recent report from the Clean Energy States Alliance. Progress has been made equally in blue, red, and purple states: In 25 key states covered by the Energy Foundation, 218 in 2019 and 2020 Political victories for clean energy in state legislatures and public utility commissions, compared to only 17 setbacks. This progress followed the state elections in 2017, 2018 and 2019, in which numerous climate leaders were elected to state offices and state parliaments.
States, along with local governments and tribal nations, have important steps in areas ranging from the use of renewable energies and the preservation of public spaces to environmental justice and the support of high-quality jobs in the field of clean energy. According to an analysis For the US climate alliance led by the Rhodium Group, 133,000 clean energy jobs were created in the allies between 2016 and 2019, with a growth rate of almost 7 percent – well above the national employment growth in the same period.
Now the lessons of climate leadership must be transferred from the State House to the White House. The Biden government and the Congress should draw on the experiences of the states in the implementation of transformative policies on the ground and include the existing interest representation coalitions of the states. Above all, they should also pursue a policy and investment agenda that directly involves states and further empowers state and local governments to continue their leadership role in climate protection. The same lawyers and lawmakers who fought for this advance in every state must now, in turn, help run the federal government.
The Center for American Progress, along with the League of Conservation Voters and other partners, launched the From the State House to the White House initiative in 2020, curating a range of materials about the achievements and voices of states, tribes and locals To elevate governments, policy experts and advocates:
- Learn from California’s ambitious climate policy, Center for American Progress, April 16, 2021
This report describes California’s state-wide approach to climate policy and how the Biden administration can translate the state’s achievements to the federal level. - Three things Biden can do to unleash state and local climate action, The Hill, March 18, 2021
This comment outlines proposals for the Biden government to leverage partnerships with state, local, and tribal leaders to address the climate crisis. - Mapping environmental justice in the Biden-Harris government, Center for American Progress, February 4, 2021
This report analyzes California’s environmental justice screening tool, CalEnviroScreen, which uses data, metrics, and technology to allocate resources for climate protection to disadvantaged communities. - The Biden administration brings state climate leadership to the White House, Center for American Progress, January 19, 2021
This edition commends President Joe Biden’s selection for his Climate Cabinet and notes that a number of them have state clearance certificates that will help inform their time in federal service. - The secret weapon in Biden’s fight against climate change, The Hill, November 14, 2020
This comment highlights the strong support for climate action from state, local and tribal governments and shows how the Biden government can build on its progress. - State climate leadership comes to the nation’s capital in 2021, Center for American Progress, Nov. 9, 2020
This column analyzes a number of critical national election results from states with strong climate, equity, and clean energy policies and argues that state climate leadership is directed to Washington, DC - States present a roadmap for climate leadership, Center for American Progress, April 30, 2020
This short version summarizes climate, environmental justice and work successes in the fields of energy, transport, construction and other sectors at the state level.
