States lead, impact follows: Why investing in state-level climate action will secure America’s climate future

The policy brief outlines seven critical functions that U.S. states perform to advance clean energy and climate goals, emphasizing that state-level action is resilient to federal political swings and provides scalable models for emissions reductions and economic development.

• States play a vital role in maintaining climate progress during periods of federal instability, acting as a "proving ground for pragmatic solutions" and ensuring that U.S. climate leadership continues internationally even when federal representation is minimal, as seen at COP30 in Brazil where over 25 governors and mayors attended despite only one elected U.S. federal official being present.
• State governments directly influence energy affordability and emissions through executive orders, legislation, and energy planning. For example, New York's 2025 state energy plan maintains a goal of a zero-emissions power sector by 2040, identifying the maximization of nuclear power as the least-cost pathway.
• State-level policies catalyze economic growth and technology deployment. Pennsylvania's RISE program allocates $396 million to reduce industrial greenhouse gas and co-pollutant emissions, while Louisiana's 2025 Clean Hydrogen Task Force report positions the state to be a "national leader in the emerging clean hydrogen economy".
• Innovative state financing and policy tools can be scaled to other jurisdictions. California's 2025 Transmission Infrastructure Accelerator, which utilizes public-private financing for transmission, is estimated by CATF and Net-Zero California to potentially save Californians $3 billion annually, or $123 billion over 40 years.

APA

Tarr, J. (2026). States lead, impact follows: Why investing in state-level climate action will secure America’s climate future. Clean Air Task Force. https://www.catf.us/2026/04/states-lead-impact-follows-why-investing-state-level-climate-action-secure-americas-climate-future/

Chicago

Tarr, Jeremy. States lead, impact follows: Why investing in state-level climate action will secure America’s climate future. Clean Air Task Force, 2026. https://www.catf.us/2026/04/states-lead-impact-follows-why-investing-state-level-climate-action-secure-americas-climate-future/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tarr |first1=Jeremy |title=States lead, impact follows: Why investing in state-level climate action will secure America’s climate future |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=15 April 2026 |url=https://www.catf.us/2026/04/states-lead-impact-follows-why-investing-state-level-climate-action-secure-americas-climate-future/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tarr2026states, author = {Tarr, Jeremy}, title = {{States lead, impact follows: Why investing in state-level climate action will secure America’s climate future}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2026}, month = apr, url = {https://www.catf.us/2026/04/states-lead-impact-follows-why-investing-state-level-climate-action-secure-americas-climate-future/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }