Signs of Hope for US Federal Climate Action in 2021

The briefing highlights three key pieces of US federal legislation—the Coronavirus and Climate Relief omnibus bill, the Trillion Trees and Natural Carbon Storage Act, and the American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act—as evidence of bipartisan and ambitious climate momentum. It further argues that President-Elect Biden's cabinet appointments, including the creation of the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and the National Climate Advisor, signal that climate change will be a cross-agency priority integrated with economic and public health policies.

• The Coronavirus and Climate Relief omnibus legislation includes several energy-focused measures: a two-year extension of the Investment Tax Credit for solar and a one-year extension of the Production Tax Credit for wind; the creation of a wind technician training grant program and an advanced solar manufacturing initiative; $14 billion for transit agencies; and up to $35 billion over 10 years for R&D in energy storage, carbon capture and removal, renewable energy, and grid modernization.
• A critical but often overlooked provision of the omnibus legislation is a commitment to reduce the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 85% over 15 years, which could potentially reduce global warming by up to 0.5 degrees Celsius.
• Two additional bills were introduced in December 2020: the Trillion Trees and Natural Carbon Storage Act, which focuses on planting trees and reducing deforestation to absorb carbon dioxide, and the American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act, which proposes a national renewable energy standard of 55 percent by 2030 and energy efficiency savings goals of 22 percent for electricity and 14 percent for natural gas by 2035.
• The American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act includes a mechanism to provide 'double RECs' (renewable energy certificates) for projects located in environmental justice communities, such as Native American lands, areas impacted by pollution, or regions distressed by the decline of coal mining.
• President-Elect Biden's cabinet appointments indicate a strategy to make climate change a cross-agency priority, evidenced by the creation of the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate (John Kerry) and the National Climate Advisor (Gina McCarthy), as well as appointing climate experts to roles like the director of the National Economic Council.

APA

RMI (2020). Signs of Hope for US Federal Climate Action in 2021. https://rmi.org/resources/signs-of-hope-for-us-federal-climate-action-in-2021/

Chicago

RMI. Signs of Hope for US Federal Climate Action in 2021. 2020. https://rmi.org/resources/signs-of-hope-for-us-federal-climate-action-in-2021/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Signs of Hope for US Federal Climate Action in 2021 |date=28 December 2020 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/signs-of-hope-for-us-federal-climate-action-in-2021/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2020signs, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Signs of Hope for US Federal Climate Action in 2021}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/signs-of-hope-for-us-federal-climate-action-in-2021/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }