ICYMI: More than 5000 Cities, States, Businesses and Institutions Sign Letter Backing the Build Back Better Agenda and Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal

This week, America is All In -- a coalition of over 5,000 businesses, cities, states, Tribal nations, and faith, health, academic, and cultural institutions -- signed a letter touting the importance of the climate policies and investments proposed in President Biden's Build Back Better Agenda and Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal.

They wrote: "The climate policies and investments proposed in the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will, when both are signed into law, put our country on a path to cut emissions in half by 2030 while creating jobs, building resilience to climate impacts, and making our economy and our communities stronger…. In December 2020, on the fifth anniversary of the Paris Agreement, our institutions committed to going 'all in' on climate and asked the Federal government to support us, partner with us, and follow our example toward the ultimate goal of net zero emissions by 2050. The combined policies and investments in the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are the way to fulfill this promise."

Read the full letter here.

October 18, 2021

We are leaders of the most expansive coalition ever assembled in support of climate action in the United States, and among the over 5,000 businesses, cities, states, tribal nations, and faith, health, academic, and cultural institutions that have declared themselves to be All In on climate. We have pledged to place climate considerations at the core of our own institutions and to support robust climate policies and investments at the national and local levels. We recognize that the bipartisan infrastructure deal and a bold and comprehensive reconciliation bill are necessary to seize our country's best opportunity to achieve meaningful federal climate policy this decade to rise to the climate crisis.

The climate policies and investments proposed in the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will, when both are signed into law, put our country on a path to cut emissions in half by 2030 while creating jobs, building resilience to climate impacts, and making our economy and our communities stronger.

The scale of the climate crisis requires solutions and investment to match. We emphasize our support for these policies found in the Build Back Better Act:

• Clean Electricity Performance Plan and tax incentives to achieve 80% clean electricity by 2030 and 100% clean electricity by 2035
• Clean building and vehicle incentives to promote efficiency and electrification
• A methane fee and capping strategy
• Robust investments for public transit
• Workforce development programs and a Civilian Climate Corps

We further ask that all investments meet or exceed the standard set by the Justice40 initiative to ensure that at least 40 percent of the benefits go to disadvantaged communities and communities in rural areas or regions impacted by the market-based transition to clean energy. These policies are part of an equitable recovery and transition.

We add our voices in support of bold climate legislation to the voices of our peers and colleagues—hundreds of leaders from mayors and governors to city councils and state legislators, tribal and faith leaders, the higher education, health, and cultural institutions that anchor communities all across the country, business executives, investors, civil society actors, and many others who have called for robust climate policies and investments, including but not limited to:

• Climate Mayors statement
• US Conference of Mayors statement
• US Climate Alliance statement
• US Health Care Climate Council statement
• American Indian and Alaska Native organizations' statement
• Corporate CEPP statement
• Individual business statements
• American Sustainable Business Council letter
• E2 business letter

We stand together with the non-federal climate movement which now represents two-thirds of the American economy and population and accounts for 51% of carbon pollution.

The urgency to act has never been greater, as the United States is pummeled by deadly and destructive weather extremes that are only exacerbated by a global fossil-fuel based economy. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other scientific bodies make clear that our window to act is rapidly closing.

In December 2020, on the fifth anniversary of the Paris Agreement, our institutions committed to going "all in" on climate and asked the Federal government to support us, partner with us, and follow our example toward the ultimate goal of net zero emissions by 2050. The combined policies and investments in the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are the way to fulfill this promise.

Sincerely,
Co-chairs and Advisory Committee members of America Is All In

• Michael Bloomberg, U.N. Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Climate Ambition and Solutions and Founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies
• Jay Inslee, Governor of Washington State and Co-founder and Co-chair of US Climate Alliance
• Vi Lyles, Mayor of Charlotte, NC
• Lloyd H. Dean, CEO of CommonSpirit Health